The People’s Progressive Party/Civic Government’s highly-touted Silica City Project along the Linden/Soesdyke Highway is expected to be realized by 2030 and according to President Dr Irfaan Ali, nothing will stop his administration from achieving this transformative initiative.
He made these declarations on Thursday evening while delivering the feature address at the opening of the International Building Expo 2024 at the Guyana National Stadium at Providence, East Bank Demerara (EBD).
The Head of State, during his remarks, unveiled the masterplan for his brainchild project – Silica City – and noted that his government will continue to engage the best experts to ensure this initiative is fruitful.
“We would have this Silica City realised by 2030. Nothing will stop us. We are going to continue to engage with the best planners – young people, experienced people, and the global community is where our learning must come from,” President Ali posited.
According to the Guyanese leader, over the years, even while in opposition, they have been working on developing Silica City and those efforts were amplified when the PPP/C returned to office in 2020 to activate the process of making this project a reality.
In fact, the Guyana Government has been working with international partners, particularly the School of Architecture at the University of Miami, over the last year to sharpen the edges in the planning framework of Silica City.
“The University of Miami became our partners as we work on completing the comprehensive outlay of what Silica City will be. Today, I have the pleasure to inform you that we have now completed the entire planning model of Silica City, and you will see this during this expo. And what you see here will be what you will get in Silica City – a city that is sustainable, resilient; a naturally beautiful city; a city that is modern, and innovative; a city that is in advance of its time; city that will be built 100 years ahead of what time will be; a city that will bring tremendous interest and position Guyana as one of the most sustainable stories in urban development.”
“This city is built on love. It is built on nature. It is built on our culture. It is built on our tradition, and it is built on innovation and sustainable development. And what you will see in this city is not only a place to live, but a place in which you will live healthy, a safe place, and a place in which the future generations of Guyana will be proud. That is a resilient city that we are building,” the president noted.
To achieve these goals, the Head of State pointed out that Guyana must learn from the mistakes that other similar cities made in their building phase.
He noted that the aim is to create a product that reflects the soul of Guyana with emphasis placed on nature. This, according to Ali is reflected in the design of Silica City – which portrays the outline of a tree with a main stem and branches and leaves that separate into different sectors that will make up the whole of Silica City.
“It is a city that is in harmony with nature, sustainable, encouraging the use of eco-friendly building materials suitable for a tropical climate. It will be energy efficient. It will use technology for wastewater management, energy management, and water conservation…”
“It will have digitalized transportation, electricity grid buildings, and multi-special health care – an environment that enhances wellbeing, productivity, and happiness… [It will also have] recreational parks and community centres, mobility and interconnectivity, a partnership among stakeholders to create new innovative products, institutions as well as entrepreneurship, smart governance, and citizen engagement,” he stated.
The Guyanese Leader outlined that the city will also serve as a fertile ground for cultivating opportunities for the clustering of companies and industries that produce innovative products, thereby paving the way for an inclusive urban economy and efficient urban living.
He added that Silica City’s development model goes beyond just environmental protection but harnesses the power of nature, to drive sustainable and green economic growth and development. The city will also be self-sufficient in food since every building will have food producing facilities.
Another hallmark of Silica City will be its focus on building close-knit families and neighborhoods. The president noted that Silica City must give its residents years on their lives.
“We want to use this city as an example of how healthy living can lead to an increased life expectancy rate. That is one of the measurement tools we are using to evaluate Silica City and the impact that would have on the population.”
“My friends, our new city will be built not only with climate resilience, and infrastructure but smart infrastructure to allow our citizens to receive modern economic and social services in their homes. The new city will create an environment that promotes his sense of place and enhances the inhabitants’ well-being productivity and happiness. We want this to be a happy city, stress-free. Happiness is the core of what we want to achieve.”
Conceptualised in 2009, Silica City is Guyana’s first smart urban centre located along the Soesdyke-Linden Highway. The first phase of the project will see an initial 400 young professional homes being constructed. It was previously reported that the Housing Ministry has already begun shortlisting persons for these homes.
In February last year, a $2.1 billion contract was inked to develop Silica City. It is envisioned that over the next two decades, this new city along the Linden-Soesdyke Highway will grow to hold more than 12,500 households.
The new secondary city is intended to be one of the PPP/C Government’s climate change mitigation strategies under its Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS).
It will initially cater to just over 3000 households in the first five years but 3800 acres of land has been earmarked for the new city, and designs for the first phase of the project will begin this year.
