The Government of Guyana (GoG) has allocated $790M to operationalise the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP) at Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara.
The building, which sits where the Ocean View Hotel once was, has been the source of much contention within the last couple of months. The deal brokered by the owner of the building and the former Coalition government has been highly criticised by the current Irfaan Ali regime.
More than $1B would have already been expended by the former administration to retrofit the building. Now, the government plans to inject another $790M to operationalise the facility.
According to the Public Works Minister, Bishop Juan Edghill, who presented the 2020 National Budget in the Parliament today, the operationalisation of the facility will ais in the fight to mitigate the impact of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The estimated $1.6B infectious disease hospital is currently housing a number of maternity COVID-19 positive cases, isolation and non-critical patients.
“Our intention is to staff and commission the facility by the end of the month,” Minister Edghill explained, adding that “the government was forced to make the allocation after they found that, much touted hospital by the previous Administration was nothing but a shell – beautifully painted but lacking in facilities that could be used as a response to COVID-19.”
“A series of problems exist at the facility, including some as basic as sewerage, water supply and electricity. We are trying to have the deficiencies corrected so that construction could be quickly concluded, to an appropriate standard, whilst equipping the facility,” the Minister explained.
