Opposition Member of Parliament Jermaine Figueira on Wednesday said that while he welcomes the expansion of the Wismar-Mackenzie bridge and development of the Linden-Lethem highway, residents of Region 10, must benefit from owning lands along that corridor for the establishment of businesses.
He made this argument during his budget debate presentation at the 74th Sitting of the National Assembly.
“Mr Speaker, we in Region 10 welcome the expansion of the Wismar- Mackenzie Bridge, our present experience daily is a testament to this need. Further, the building of the Linden to Lethem highway is equally important to our people and region, for the enormous potential it can harness for growth and development. However, our people must benefit from owning lands along that corridor for the establishment of businesses”, Figueira told the house.
The Parliamentarian is of the view that Region Ten [Upper Demerara-Upper Berbice] is best suited to become a commercial and heavy cargo trans-shipment hub, due to its geography.
He said the People of Region 10 will no longer accept the idea of just being the gateway to the interior and Brazil, where business counterparts traverse, just to locate other opportunities outside of that administrative region and businesses pass through to another destination.
According to Figueira, he alongside residents will be clamouring for Region 10 to become accredited as a destination for commerce, trade, tourism and entertainment.
“No other region in this country is more connected to Guyana than Region Ten, the heartland region through which all three main rivers flow, and the heartland which can access 8 of our ten regions,” he told the National Assembly.
He recommended that Budget 2024 could aid the administrative zone in becoming that “transshipment commercial hub”.
On the corridor to Brazil, Figueira said Region 10 needs an industrial duty-free zone to be established, where there are facilities such as container terminals, assembling plants, warehouses, and cottage industries.
He also recommended that there be small, medium and large-scale manufacturing industries, to procure a sustainable source of income.
The APNU+AFC Member also recommended that there be investments in the region with the aid of the local private sector, but for this to come into fruition the aesthetic of several projects in the region needs to be developed, he noted.
“We need to see the Linden airstrip, which is considered the 3rd best in the country, developed now and comes under the control of the municipality as a revenue earner for the township. It needs a hangar, a control tower and other facilities to contribute to air travel to the interior and other Caribbean destinations and Budget 2024 can make all of this possible Mr. Speaker, but its course needs adjusting”, he posited.
Turning Attention to the Linden Enterprise Network (LEN), Figuiera lamented that the initiative which is geared at supporting local entrepreneurship, is failing miserably due to no support from stakeholders in the private sector.
“The paltry injection of 50 million in 2022, 2023, and again in 2024 means nothing to the people of Linden if our people can’t access the funds. If we are serious about helping people develop businesses and create employment opportunities as a means of diversifying the local economy away from its bauxite dependency, then the funds to LEN should not only be made available quickly but should be increased to 1 billion dollars, to make real the many opportunities that corridor to South America will afford the people of region ten”, he charged.
The government vowed last year to appoint a Board of Directors at the Linden Enterprise Network, but the financial institution to date is without a board.
According to the 2024 Budget Estimates, LEN will again receive approximately $50M to cover operational expenses.
At a recent press held by the Regional Democratic Council of Region 10, On Friday, January 19, Regional Chairman Deron Adams, said the provision of just $50M for LEN is a clear indication that the Government has no intention to effectively operationalize the lending institution, much to the detriment of the business community in Linden and by extension Region 10.
Also echoing Adams’ sentiments was Parliamentarian Devin Sears who bemoaned that since there is no appointed board, LEN is unable to issue loans.
He told the press “Every year, $50M has been allocated to LEN. We know that it is still receiving the repayments of loans that were taken from way back when.
“Additionally, it is earning from the rental of office spaces, etcetera, and this money goes into an account and it pays staff, utility, security, etcetera but over the years, it has accumulated over $300M, which is supposed to be released for persons who want to start a small business, training, etcetera however, because there is a lack of a board, these funds cannot be released,”
Noting that there is no justification for the delay in the appointment of the Board, Sears said at this point, the region simply wants the money to be made available to its people for the development of their businesses.
Adams however chimed in and related that since the government took its oath of office in August 2020, funding for LEN has been suspended.
“As you would recall, it was the coalition government that activated a process where over $150M was made available to Linden Enterprise Network (LEN) to help small businesses, that number has since grown to $300M but since 2020 when this government assumed office, the board was dissolved and LEN has not been lending monies. Several of the staff have resigned and we have been calling for that board to be reconstituted so that farmers and small businesses can be assisted in their endeavours,” the Regional Chairman said.
During the consideration of the 2023 budget estimates last year, the Minister with responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh, when pressed for answers, told Opposition MP Juretha Fernandes that the appointment of the Board was “pending.”
At the time, he said the matter was actively engaging the attention of the Government as a matter of urgency.
