UNICEF reps pays courtesy call on Prime Minister Phillips

Prime Minister, Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips on Monday received a courtesy call from several representatives of United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) at his Camp Street Office.

UNICEF’s Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, Jean Gough, Representative to Guyana and Suriname, Nicolas Pron, Deputy Representative to Guyana and Suriname, Irfan Akhtar and UN Resident Coordinator, Yesim Oruc were also present.

Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in schools, COVID-19, healthcare, infrastructure and climate change were among some of the areas of focus during the discussions.

Prime Minister Phillips during the discussion relayed that government has taken steps through its Hinterland Poor and Remote Communities, to provide internet access to over 200 communities. He said by mid-year, 33 communities will be connected using solar power. The Prime Minister also made known that government is expending a lot of money on smart education.

He said through budget 2022, a number of infrastructural projects are on stream. They include several roads and bridges to enhance access countrywide.

In the area of healthcare, he pointed out that several state-of-the-art hospitals are slated to commence this year, adding further that government is also expanding its Community Health Workers programme to service the hinterland communities.

Recognising the impacts of climate change, the PM relayed that fund are being expended to strengthen river and sea defence. This is in addition to construction of two canals that mirror the Hope Canal on the East Coast Demerara.

Additionally, the Prime Minister informed the team that to date, 85.4 percent of the country’s adult population took the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine while 65.5 percent is fully immunised. He said while there is vaccine hesitancy in some sections of the country, government is continuing its educational programmes on the vaccination.