Govt to introduce digital mapping tool to reduce damages to public infrastructure

Damages to Guyana’s road infrastructure to facilitate works on utility lines or vice versa will soon be a thing of the past with the introduction of an integrated Geographic Information System (GIS) infrastructure mapping tool.

This was announced by President Dr Irfaan Ali on Wednesday when he rolled out the People’s Progressive Party/Civic Administration’s Digital Guyana initiative – a platform geared towards enhancing access to government services, supporting efficiency and reliability in daily lives, and improving the ease of doing business, among other things.

According to the Head of State, this infrastructure mapping tool will see all the country’s physical infrastructure being digitised – something that is key to building a modern society.

“Digital Guyana will also introduce an integrated Geographic Information System to map and monitor national infrastructure in real time.

“This system will be able to create 3-D models of all physical infrastructure across the country, such as roads, bridges, kokers and drainage, underground conduits, utility posts, hydrants and more,” he said.

This mapping tool, the President explained, will reduce the chances of damages being done to road networks.

“So, the days of cutting the roads and cutting the highways in search of pipelines will be long gone, and we can use technology to do this more efficiently, reducing the risk but also creating an enabling environment for comfort of our citizens.”

“It will serve as a single, unified data layer for both public and private sector use, enable smarter planning, quicker emergency response and more efficient utility coordination. It will be developed through public private collaboration. This GIS model will become the backbone for infrastructure management, linking Smart City technologies with the real-world systems that support our communities,” President Ali noted.

This initiative comes on the heels of several cases of infrastructure disruptions across the country.

Currently, the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) is executing a $1 billion project to upgrade Georgetown’s ageing pipe infrastructure.

While this is aimed at enhancing service levels and improving water quality for customers, the GWI works have caused major traffic disruptions and chaos along the Avenue of the Republic in Central Georgetown

On the other hand, contractors building new or upgrading existing roads have also caused damage to utility lines and poles. In fact, there were several instances of poles being uprooted due to the negligence of road contractors.