Difficulties for the movement of people, increase in consumer prices, fears for the water supply… The lack of rainfall which is hitting the territory hard has multiple consequences for the populations of the interior municipalities. Residents of Maripasoula give their feelings.
In a video he sent us, Fernand Bakaman shows the level of Maroni. This one is desperately low. This situation, a consequence of the lack of precipitation across Guyana, has a stronger resonance in the communes of the interior, such as at home, in Maripasoula. « We lack the minimum, he is indignant. Food and fuel prices have soared ! A liter of fuel went from 1.50 euros to three euros, a bottle of gas went from 45 to 70 euros, a 25-kilo bag of rice went from 25 to 50 euros. It’s becoming really unbearable for us, the people of Maripasoula. »
This inflation is directly attributable to the difficulties of canoes navigating on the Maroni. “From time to time, a canoe arrives, with barrels and a few odds and ends, but we have difficulty getting supplies because there is, for the moment, no airlift to help us. The town remains landlocked” deplores the Maripasoulian.
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Alerted by the mayors' association, the prefecture launched the Orsec Water plan (Civil Security Response Organization, editor's note) at the start of the week. For the State, it is a question of coordinating the responses to be provided to the various parties concerned and guaranteeing the safety of populations both in terms of health and the supply of essential products.
From now on, daily crisis units are organized by the Zone Operational Center, which coordinates the actions carried out by the various State services.
While supply by river is complicated, the lack of space on planes is also felt. « With Air Guyane (Guyane Express Fly), freight now takes a month to arrive »regrets Mimise Agouinti, resident of Maripasoula.
To try to resolve this problem, on Thursday, leaving the crisis unit, Thibault Lechat-Vega, third vice-president of the CTG presented some of the avenues proposed by the community. « Starting next week, a cargo plane will ensure supplies to affected communities. We are also in the process of seeing with the services and the various partners if we can have an all-cargo ATR plane as reinforcement, if the crisis were to last to avoid a disruption in supply. » Still in the air, the Armed Forces of Guyana stand ready to mobilize their Casa if necessary.
On a very short scale, the question of schooling also arises. As the All Saints' Day holidays end, students and their teachers must return to schools. « With the Territorial Collectivity of Guyana and the rectorate, indicates the prefect, Antoine Poussierwe are currently thinking about a system to ensure educational continuity. » In addition to this possible distance learning tool, prioritization for teachers will be made on flights from the coast.
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Another cause for concern : energy. The Maripasoula and Papaïchton power stations each need 8 tonnes of fuel per day. Here too the prefecture was reassuring after its discussions with EDF.
Apart from the surge in prices, the mayor of Maripasoula, Serge Anneli, recognizes that the town of his commune is not impacted by certain difficulties experienced by remote villages. The councilor is thinking in particular of the supply of drinking water. « Established boreholes have dried up. » Although he is aware that certain measures must be taken urgently, Serge Anneli is already looking further ahead in order to reduce the dependence of his citizens on groundwater levels. « We need to work with the SGDE on new capture systems, perhaps directly in the river. But such a system, for a village like Taluen, is at least 400 000 euros. »
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