With official figures showing over 4,000 Venezuelan migrants registered in Guyana, the local office of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has received some US$500,000 through its regional office to assist them and a sizeable amount of it will be used for water and sanitation in border communities, according to UNICEF Emergency Officer Ian Jones.
Jones, who was speaking to the media at annual review of the joint UNICEF and government annual work plan for last year, said emphasis is also being placed on integrating the migrant children into the school system. Since the crisis in their country, Venezuelans have been flooding neighbouring countries. Those who have come to Guyana have settled mostly in regions One and Seven.
UNICEF is part of the National Multi-Sectoral Coordinating Committee, which has been working to ensure that Venezuelan migrants are properly documented, vaccinated and provided for in terms of food and shelter.