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Six NDCs get $96M mini-excavators
Kaieteur News- Six mini-excavators valuing $96 million were handed over to six East Bank Demerara (EBD) Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) on Friday by the Ministry of Agriculture to assist in community projects.
Caption: Minister of Local Government Sonia Parag (centre), Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha (left), and NDC overseers during the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the handover of the excavators.
The presentation was made by Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha who explained that Friday’s presentation represented the first phase of an initiative aimed at equipping all NDCs across the country to maintain and manage their communities effectively.
He explained that the second phase includes providing garbage trucks to every NDC.
The NDCs that received the mini-excavators are Eccles/ Ramsburg, Mocha/Arcadia, Little Diamond/Herstelling, Soesdyke/Hui’s Te/Coverden, and Hauraruni/Yarrowkabra. The machines will be used to maintain proper drainage systems within the community.
Minister Mustapha during a live broadcast published on the Ministry of Agriculture’s Facebook page, highlighted the importance of NDCs being the first responders to each community.
“You are the face of the government and the first contact within the community and people depend on you and your NDC to ensure that you development and you take care of business within the NDC area,” he said.
The Minister also underscored the importance of the new machinery in advancing the development of robust drainage systems to mitigate the impacts of climate change. He noted that the initiative is part of the Government’s broader efforts to modernize and strengthen the country’s drainage infrastructure, ensuring better resilience against flooding.
Mustapha mentioned that so far, NDCs in Region Five and on the East Coast of Demerara have received similar machinery, and Region Six will be receiving its equipment today. “Tomorrow (Saturday), we will see that Region 6 too, we will give them some over there. Almost all the NDCs will have the use of these excavators,” he confirmed.
However, he urged members of the NDCs to ensure that the machinery is used to benefit the community while noting that they are not for personal use. “We want these excavators to use for the benefit of the community because many times when we give out these things and when minister or presidents goes into the community, we are getting serious complaints that these things are used for friends and family, we can’t do that,” Mustapha sternly said.
To address potential misuse, he assured that the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) would continue to supervise the operators and would collaborate with the NDCs to develop a comprehensive programme for the machinery’s use.
Friday’s handing over ceremony followed the announcement by Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo on Thursday that by the end of this year, all NDCs will receive a mini-excavator to assist with community work.
Meanwhile, Minister of Local Government, Sonia Parag, announced that her ministry would be rolling out a garbage truck initiative for each NDC across the country.
“The Ministry of Local Government in 2025, we will roll out an initiative which is an initiative from the president… the rolling out of garbage trucks for each NDC across the country,” she said.
(Six NDCs get $96M mini-excavators)
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