CNOOC donates conference hall, kitchen to school in Guyana

CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited (CPGL) last Friday donated a Conference Hall and Kitchen to the Windsor Forest Primary School in Region 3. The two storeyed concrete structure was erected at a cost of some $30M Guyanese dollars or US$143,000 and donated by the Company, in honour of the Anniversary of Chinese Arrival Day.

CPGL, the largest Chinese investor in the Caribbean, initiated the project and financed the cost of the building, in collaboration with the school and in cooperation with other Chinese entities in Guyana, among them, the Qinjian Construction Company, Power China, and AMG Mining Inc.

The dedication ceremony took place at the school’s compound on West Coast Demerara in the presence of the Minister of Education, Hon. Priya Manickchand, the Ambassador of China, Her Excellency Mme. Guo Haiyan, deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Natural Resources, Mr. Vishal Ambedkar, as well as members of the Association of Chinese Enterprises of Guyana (ACEG) that also contributed to the project.

Education Minister, Priya Manickchand welcomed the initiative in honour of Chinese Arrival Day. She led the commissioning ceremony for the building and commended CPGL on its latest initiative. The Minister lauded the head teacher, Ms. L. Inderdeo, and staff for the performance of the Windsor Forest Primary School.

Principal of Windsor Forest Primary School, Mrs Inderdeo presents a plaque to the President of CPGL, Liu Xiaoxiang as a token of gratitude for CPGL’s donation of a kitchen and conference hall (CPGL Photo)

The Ambassador of China, Mme. Guo, expressed her delight that the dedication ceremony for the new Conference Hall and Kitchen was done to honour Chinese Arrival Day, noting the significant contributions and accomplishments that Chinese have made since their arrival in Guyana in 1853. She said that Chinese Arrival Day is an occasion to recognize the history and the contributions of Chinese in Guyana, to promote multiculturalism among ethnic groups and to contribute to the effort to build One Guyana. Ambassador Guo also welcomed the cooperation of the members of the ACEG in realising the project.

In a brief address, President of CPGL, Mr. Liu Xiaoxiang, cited a number of additional CSR contributions that his Company has made to benefit the field of education, including local and overseas tertiary scholarships, relief donations for the Mahdia dormitory and Christ Church Secondary School fires, a Secondary School Competition on Clean and Renewable Energy, a national Table Tennis Competition, as well as the sponsorship of training and students’ visits to China. The CPGL President noted that his Company’s motto is to build a bridge of friendship between China and Guyana.

Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Natural Resources, Mr. Vishal Ambedkar, lauded CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited for the initiative, which he said represents an active and much welcome policy from that company in the area of Education, as well as in other areas of social need.

The ceremony featured cultural displays by the Confucius Institute and students at the School. It concluded with a ribbon-cutting ceremony to dedicate the school’s new Kitchen and Conference Hall.