$40.3M estimated to construct health facilities in Reg.10

Apr 14, 2022 News

Kaieteur News – Making use of its $1 billion allocation for the health sector, the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region 10 is looking to spend some $40.3 million for the construction of a health post at Falmouth in the Essequibo River and a health centre at Muritaro in the Demerara River.
These projects were revealed during the opening of tenders last Wednesday at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) office. According to the RDC’s engineer’s estimates, the Muritaro Health Centre is estimated to cost $15.4 million while the health post in Falmouth is projected at $24.9 million.
The companies that put in bids for these projects are: JJ Mining & Construction, who bid $15,000,000 for the Muritaro project. While Brick & Mortar Construction Service & General Supplies bid $23,067,203, Andy Const Company bid $23,667,203, BDE Recycling bid $32,900,000, and Orin’s Supreme Enterprise bid $24,859,640 for the project in Falmouth.
It was reported that from this year’s budget, approximately $5.3 billion was allocated to Region 10, which would see $1.1 billion for its health sector, $75 million for agriculture, $352 million for public works and some $3.4 billion for education.
Kaieteur News was told that the construction of these two brand new facilities would have a pivotal role for the Falmouth and Muritaro communities since it would give residents there easy access to healthcare services. This is according to the Regional Chairman, Deron Adams who told this publication that the RDC is pleased the projects are coming on stream and that it will soon become a reality for these Amerindian communities.
Adams said that last year, he along with his RDC team had visited these communities where representations were made to have these health posts constructed.
“In 2021, myself and RDC councillors would have visited River’s View and Falmouth and we would have made representation after consulting with the residents there for a health post to be constructed and in the Demerara River as well as at Muritaro, representation was made and we are happy that the area is receiving help,” he explained.
He noted that at the current situation, villagers are forced to travel long distances to receive health treatments.
For example, he noted that Falmouth which is a satellite village and is home at over 300 persons, the villagers there are often times forced to travel to Riverview’s view for basic health services. According to him, its a15-minute boat ride from Falmouth to River’s View. The RDC Chairman went on to state that “We have been getting a number of reports in terms of storage for vaccine especially at River’s View and Falmouth, where they would normally have to send these items back to Bartica. So we are optimistic with the construction of that facility that it would be equipped with the requisite equipment that is needed to ensure that health care delivery is up to par, whether it is the freezer to store vaccine or otherwise.”
The Chairman concluded that the RDC will continue to ensure that it consults with its constituents individually, in groups and in various stakeholder forums so that its policy pursuits related to health care delivery are directed by the true needs of the people at River’s View, Falmouth, Muritaro and all other areas. “They can expect to see more of the RDC 10 Councillors and Technical Officers visiting in anticipation of the 2023 budget preparation. It’s my hope that the health department will soon embark on a Health Fair at River’s View and Falmouth so that residents can benefit from and have access to critical services, free health examinations, etc,” he added.

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