The Committee of Supplies of the National Assembly on Thursday, approved in excess of $18B to fund the capital and current expenditures for the Ministry of Public Security and its related agencies in 2018.
Under its capital projects, more than $3B will be expended while current expenditure will be valued in excess of $15B.
Of the allocated sums the $1,175,314 will be expended for the purposes of policy Development and Administration under Public Security Ministry. This will see donations to several associated agencies, among them the Guyana Road Safety Council and the Parole Board.
According to a release from the Department of Public Information (DPI) Minister Khemraj Ramjattan said that the approved sums will also allow for increased intelligence capacity through the Crime and Security Intelligence funding, establishment of a wider intelligence network and the employment of five security analysts in the Planning Unit of the Guyana Police Force.
He said further that more than $13M will be paid to various organisations to which the Guyana Police Force are associated, among them INTERPOL and the Association of Caribbean Police Commissioners.
Capital expenditures will see the acquisition and installation of a new surveillance system, acquisition of land and water transport equipment coupled with the completion, rehabilitation and construction of several Police stations.
Meanwhile there will be the continued construction of a modern state-of-the-art prison at Mazaruni to house an additional 400 prisoners and the Guyana Fire Service will be the recipient of New ambulances and tenders.
Ramjattan informed the Committee of Supply that contracted employees at the Ministry are projected to be reduced, from 244 currently to 160, in 2018 as Government will be migrating them to the fixed pensionable establishment.
The Minister also indicated a projected reduction in the cost of ration for inmates of the various prisons given an increased output of poultry and other agricultural produce at various prison locations.
Budget 2018 valued in excess of $257B was read on Monday, November 27 and contentiously debated for over a period of seven days.
