New East Bank highway advancing through backlands – AG Nandlall
The Government of Guyana continues to advance large-scale infrastructure works along the East Bank Demerara corridor, with the extension of the four-lane highway from Buzz Bee Dam to Land of Canaan now progressing rapidly.
Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Mohabir Anil Nandlall, SC, during a visit to project sites along corridor, emphasised the importance of the ongoing changes, stating that the work is happening in previously undeveloped areas that were once forests, farms, and vacant land.
The East Bank corridor is a key transport route for commuters and commercial traffic, and it continues to undergo significant expansion works. These works aim to improve connectivity, reduce congestion and strengthen long-term economic activity across the region.
The attorney general underscored the extent of development in areas that many citizens have never accessed.
“Tens of thousands of Guyanese would have never come here and would not know of the type of development that is going on in the deep recesses of these backlands,” he stated.
He further emphasised the scale of work required to transform the landscape for the highway and utility corridor.
“This is another transformation project, a four-lane highway that is being built at the back of East Bank of Demerara that many Guyanese may have never seen and may be unaware of,” Minister Nandlall explained.
The highway extension, which forms part of a wider national infrastructure programme, is designed to open up tens of thousands of acres of land, much of it privately owned or under leasehold, converting former swamp and agricultural areas into high-value development zones.
Earlier in January, President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali visited the corridor where he outlined the project’s broader economic and technical significance.
The president noted that land values along the East Bank corridor have increased significantly, with some areas now valued at hundreds of millions of dollars per acre as a direct result of government investment in modern infrastructure.
Contracts totalling $52.5 billion were awarded last year for the construction of the highway extension. Once completed, the new roadway will link seamlessly with the Great Diamond to Craig Highway and the Heroes Highway.
The East Bank highway expansion forms part of a wider national transport network that begins at Mandela Avenue, runs through the Heroes Highway, and continues through Craig, Buzz Bee Dam, and onward to Land of Canaan, with future extensions planned toward the Linden–Soesdyke Highway.