Residents of Yakusari and Johanna are the first two communities in Black Bush Polder, Corentyne to benefit from the government’s Information and Communications Techno-logy (ICT) Hubs.
The Department of Public Information (DPI) said that on May 25, 10 laptop computers were handed over to the Yakusari Community Centre which will house the ICT hub.
Among those present at the presentation was the Prime Minister’s Representative for East Berbice-Corentyne (Region Six), Gobin Harbhajan who said that in early April executives from the community centre approached his office in Port Mourant and sought donations for computers. They also brought to his attention the challenges the community faces in accessing the internet.
Harbhajan said that contact was made with the E-Governance personnel in the region seeking assistance and a letter was dispatched to the Minister of Public Telecommunications, Cathy Hughes who immediately approved the establishment of the hub after she learnt of the situation.
On Monday last, a team visited the area and within one working day the community centre was connected. The team also noticed the Yakusari Primary School located nearby was equipped with a computer laboratory but had no internet access. The following day the Yakusari and Johanna primaries began receiving internet access as well.
For 71-year-old Purnamattie Mangra, this was her first time using a computer and she was beaming with joy. “I never do this, before. I don’t know about it but I want to learn.” She plans to attend the computer classes once it begins, DPI said.
Nine-year-old Jairam Dookram was happy to know there is place in his community where he can tap the internet for research purposes.
