The Georgetown City Council has reported a big decrease in revenue since the confirmation of the first novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) case in Guyana on March 11.
According to Town Clerk Sherry Jerrick, the council has seen a massive decrease in revenue from every source or operation that they would normally receive income from. “Our revenue has significantly declined, there’s a shortfall,” Jerrick told Stabroek News in an interview last week.
She said that there has been a decrease in traffic and shoppers within the municipal markets. “It is not business as usual,” the official said. Jerrick added that the council has not yet considered the option of having the markets closed even as one of the methods put forward to combat the spread of the virus is social distancing.
However, the council’s administration has put in place a number of systems in an attempt to stop the spread of the virus. The town clerk said that they have already implemented a rotation system for staff members so as to prevent crowding in the offices and it has so far been working well. “We’re trying to maintain all of our offices, maintain them being opened for business and of course we are observing all of the precautionary measures and advice by the Ministry of Public Health,” Jerrick said.
She added that the current focus is to keep the employees and persons within the city safe as Guyana fights to prevent the spread of the virus.
