The government has mapped every community ground across the country and is rolling out committees and maintenance systems to improve public recreational spaces.
During his appearance on the Starting Point Podcast, Minister within the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, Steven Jacobs, said the initiative forms part of a broader government effort to rehabilitate community infrastructure and improve the condition of public spaces nationwide.
“Based on the President’s directive, we have mapped every single ground in the entire country and photographed every single piece of infrastructure,” Jacobs said.
According to Jacobs, the government is establishing community ground committees that will include residents, representatives from regional and local democratic bodies, religious organisations, the Office of the President and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport. He said the structure is intended to allow communities to raise concerns about facilities that require urgent attention.
“We’ve formulated the plan to attack or to fix any community ground,” Jacobs said, adding that the programme is being rolled out extensively across the country.
He noted that the government is working with the Ministry of Local Government on a maintenance programme for community grounds that is close to being finalised.
Jacobs linked the initiative to wider government efforts to improve infrastructure and public spaces, particularly in Georgetown. He argued that open spaces in the capital, which fall under the management of the Mayor and City Council, had been neglected for years, citing drainage, garbage collection and the condition of recreational facilities.
“So His Excellency, the government, we decided that we’re going to take on the responsibility,” Jacobs said.
He pointed to recent infrastructure works, including the rehabilitation of roads and the clearing of cemeteries as part of the government’s broader urban improvement efforts.
Jacobs cited the reconstruction of Aubrey Barker Road in Georgetown as an example of how development can improve communities, noting that property values along the corridor had increased after the road was paved.
“We want to manage Georgetown. We want to make Georgetown clean. We want to make Georgetown a friendly space, but we want a Georgetown that every single Guyanese can be proud of,” he said.
Jacobs added that the government is also working with the King’s Foundation to preserve and present Georgetown’s historical character. The details for these, he said, will be revealed in due course.