EU Helps Sea and River Defense Projects in Guyana
Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson, yesterday received a final copy of the Coastal Engineering Design Manual for the Guyana Sea and River Defenses from European Union (EU) Ambassador, Jernej Videtič.
The handing over ceremony comes almost seven months after the Ministry and the EU partnered to host a two-day workshop to finalize the document
On December 8th 2015, staff from MPI’s Sea and River Defense Department gathered to offer their input on the manual, with the goal of improving Guyana’s sea defense system.
The manual aims to provide appropriate and practical guidance for applications of methods and techniques in regards to the design and implementation of coastal engineering projects in Guyana. These projects concern new constructions or repair and rehabilitation of existing ones; the prevention of the erosion of oceanic, estuarine, and recessed coasts; coastal flooding; and the heavy damage from wave attacks to valuable coastal commercial, urban, and tourist communities of Guyana.
Focus areas in the document include integrated planning for sea and river defense works in Guyana; the physical site conditions and data collection issues; and natural flood protection systems along Guyana’s oceanic coast and river banks and their relevance to the shore zone management process.
The Government of Guyana and the EU are currently developing a subsequent Sea and River Defense program under the 11th European Development Fund. Under the 11th EDF, support to the sector will be more than doubled to approximately $33.8 million.
