President visits zones 19 & 20 at Providence |01 December 2021

• Minister Vidot satisfied with ‘fruitful’ visit

Accompanied by the Minister for Investment, Entrepreneurship and Industry Devika Vidot, President Wavel Ramkalawan yesterday visited zone 19, 20 and 20 Extension at Providence.

A delegation from the Industrial Estates Authority (IEA) and other high level officials from the Ministry of Investment, Entrepreneurship and Industry were also present for the visit which concentrated mainly in places where contractor Vijay Construction was supposed to have completed its work but could not after declaring bankruptcy following its legal battle with Eastern European Engineering Ltd.

Speaking to the press after the visit, Minister Vidot said: “The visit was a fruitful one and the President was able to give me the support that the ministry and IEA have been looking for. We have made some giant steps forward, however we have noticed that a lot of decisions taken have not been acted upon. We really needed his support today to make sure that we deliver on all the decisions we had taken at the start of our tenure.”

The purpose of this visit was for the President to come and take note of the problems we are facing on the industrial zone on a daily basis. As you all could see today, we do have many issues within the industrial zone and we visited four spots today so that he can bring his support during cabinet meetings,” added

Minister Vidot who also remarked that the presence of the President and delegates from different agencies and ministries allows them to understand the situation better and come up with decisions.

“The President was able to give his guidance on some immediate issues to tackle. The main reason why the President came today is because things are taking too long to materialise. Things are lagging behind and we can see too many bureaucratic procedures. There are too many problems and no solutions. After this visit, all stakeholders will meet to prepare an action plan and move things forward. I expect things to move forward faster and efficiently,” noted Minister Vidot.

Another fact is that with the previous contractor stopping all work, many projects have been delayed. The main projects for the industrial zone were the installation of drainage and service facilities such as electricity etc.

Minister Vidot has urged all those who have a plot of land in the industrial zone to be more cautious how they use their land and she has also called on members of the public not to dump their garbage on unidentified land.

After the visit President Ramkalawan met with the stakeholders in the new IEA office in the Leve Debourye building.

The accompanying photos show some highlights of the visit.

Vidya Gappy

Photos by Thomas Meriton