A team comprising Guyanese and Surinamese will meet within two weeks to agree on technical issues that would be pivotal to the soliciting of bids for the bridge across the Corentyne River.
This disclosure, according to the Government Information Agency, was made yesterday by President Bharrat Jagdeo while speaking with reporters at the Little Rock Hotel, Region Six. The Guyanese Head of State was accompanied by Suriname’s President Desi Bouterse who travelled with President Jagdeo after the latter’s visit to the neighbouring country on Friday.
The Heads said that erecting the bridge across the border river was high on their agenda to facilitate trade and other bilateral ties. Guyana and Suriname are seeking Chinese investment to construct the bridge.
“We have had discussions on it…it was the subject of a meeting yesterday (Friday) as to how we would proceed with the next step. We have defined the work of the committee that we agreed when we met in Guyana, so the committee will proceed now to look at the technical options available; where would be the best site to locate the bridge,” President Jagdeo said, according to GINA.
Sites for the structure and technical specifications would be looked at by the committee following which, “we will then seek proposals from various sources, and we hope those proposals will involve some financing options and then we will make a determination and hopefully, move forward with the bridge,” Jagdeo reported.
President Jagdeo said that a clear case has been made for the bridge’s construction when one looks at the time taken to travel on the ferry MV Canawaima.
“If you look at all the time wasted and you put a cost to that time, it makes the project feasible. It may pay back for the project itself, just from cutting the time wasted,” President Jagdeo said, according to GINA.
