Parliament Office is currently working towards the printing of its own Hansard to be delivered within seven days after a member of parliament had made a presentation in the National Assembly, Speaker Ralph Ramkarran says.
Meanwhile, the Parliament Office is also conducting a feasibility study for the construction of an adjoining wing to the south-eastern part of the Parliament Building.
During an interview with Stabroek News on Friday, Ramkarran said that in terms of the production of its own Hansard, he expects that this project, using modern computer technology with which parliament would be fully equipped, would be up and running during the second half of this year.
At present, he said that the production of the Hansard was done by a private agency and it came back to Parliament a year later.
The Hansard project along with the complete refurbishment of another committee room on the ground floor, is receiving funds under the government’s Financial and Fiscal Management Programme (FFMP) which is funded in large part from a US$6.6 million loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
The loan, which is also shared by the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), and which has made possible a number of works already completed in parliament, covers the procurement of equipment including computers, photocopiers, audio equipment, and the acquisition and installation of conference facilities.
He said too that a number of MPs had been sent on study tours, in addition to which several seminars for MPs had been held as well as staff training.
Under the FFMP, too, he noted that two manuals on rules, practices and procedures had been produced for use by the parliamentary committees and the National Assembly. Both are with select committees after which they are expected to come before the National Assembly for approval.
Following parliamentary approval, he said the manuals would be printed and seminars held to train the staff and MPs on their use.
Also still on stream, he said, was the project to significantly upgrade the library, the quality of the library staff and the quantity of materials and volumes available for use both by the MPs and members of the public.
Under the programme, funds were available for carrying out a study – with due consideration for the historical and architectural design of the building – for the construction of an extension to the southern wing. Behind the current wing, he said, there was a jungle of ill-assorted buildings that looked more like a shed which accommodated a police outpost.
Once the study was completed and approved, the Parliament Office would seek funding for the construction. He hoped that this project would be approved during the current Ninth Parliament.
An addition to the south wing, he said, would be in keeping with the improvement and development of the Parliament Office, which in recent years included the complete refurbishment of the parliament chamber, the establishment of an MPs lounge, renovation of the restroom facilities, retiling of the upper floor and the refurbishment of a room in parliament for a committee room in the eastern wing on the ground floor.
With the completion of the refurbishment of another room in the southern wing on the ground floor, he said, there would be two permanent committee rooms. (Miranda La Rose)
