2019 rated best performing year for MoPI says Min. Patterson

─new Service Division established

DPI, Guyana, Wednesday, January 8, 2020

“We expended 100 per cent of our budget. On the capital side, which is both local and foreign, we expended 84 per cent of our budget. To combine, we expended $34.1 Billion, which is 88 per cent of our allocation,” said Minister of Public Infrastructure, Hon. David Patterson.

The Minister was at the time speaking at Wednesday’s press conference on the ministry’s performance over the past year.

In the $38.5Billion capital budget, the local sums are those provided by the Consolidated Fund and under the line item deemed “specific”, loans and foreign inputs are included.

Under the local sums, the Public Infrastructure ministry expended 99 per cent of its allocation. Under specific, 68 per cent was expended, which translates to $9.4Billion out of a total sum of $13.8Billion.

The 68 per cent, the minister said, is ‘most notably’ as a result of the halt in the Sheriff -Mandela road expansion project and the slow movement of the East Coast- East Bank bypass road.

Nevertheless, the report by the ministry has highlighted the formation of a new Service Division that will play a critical role in the execution of civil works.

According to Minister Patterson, “the service department has a dual function. Firstly, it is geared to review all designs for infrastructure projects for all government Ministries and secondly to monitor the execution of these projects, such as post construction.”

It was explained that Ministries will send their plans to the Service Division for advice prior to proceeding to the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB).