Georgetown, Guyana

Georgetown, estimated population 250,000 ( 1998), is the capital and largest city of Guyana, located in the Demerara-Mahaica region. It is situated on the Atlantic coast at the mouth of the Demerara River and is nicknamed 'Garden City of the Caribbean.' Georgetown is located at 6°48′N 58°10′W.

History

Georgetown was originally called Stabroek when the Dutch controlled the region. The settlement gained permanence during a period of French control when the first paved street, Brickdam, was built. It was renamed Georgetown in 1812 in honour of King George III, after the British occupied the colony during the Napoleonic Wars, and gained official city status on Aug 24, 1842 during the reign of Queen Victoria. In 1945 a large fire (The Great Fire) broke out in the city causing widespread damage.

The Capital City

Georgetown is the seat of the central Government of Guyana. All Executive Departments are located in the city. Parliament, Guyana's Legislative Building, is also found in Georgetown and so is the Court of Appeals, Guyana's highest judicial court. The Official residence of the Head of State as well as the Head of Government are both located in Guyana's only city.

Economy

Demerara sugar, timber, bauxite, gold, and diamonds are exported through Georgetown's harbour.

List of businesses headquartered in Georgetown:

  • Bank of Guyana
  • N.Osman Investments
  • Western Union Guyana Ltd
  • Grace Kennedy Remitence Service
  • Money Gram Guyana
  • Scotia Bank Guyana
  • KFC
  • Laparkan Group of Companies
  • Gafoors Group of Companies
  • Sprint 151
  • Guyana Telephone & Telegraph Company
  • Guyana Power & Light
  • Guyana Water Inc
  • Guyana Net
  • U-Mobile
  • St.Joseph's Mercy Hospital
  • KPMG Guyana
  • National Milling Company of Guyana
  • Le Mederian Pegasus Hotel
  • The Tower Hotel
  • Courts Guyana Ltd
  • Guyana Stores
  • John Lewis Styles
  • Giftland
  • National Communications Network
  • British Sky Broadcasting (Sky TV)

Politics

Executive- Georgetown is politically governed by a Mayor. The Mayor's office inculdes several supporting agencies and divisions including the offices of the Deputy Mayor, City Clerk and City Engineer. The Mayor's office also supervises the city counstables, who are city police with special duties. The current mayor of Georgetown is former cabinet minister Hamilton Green.

Legislative- The City Counsil is the legislative branch of the city government.

Performing Arts

Georgetown's theatre scene is dominantly concentrated on the stages the National Cultural Centre.

Points of Interest

Georgetown is laid out in a N-S, E-W grid, interlaced with canals protected by kokers built by the Dutch and later the British that provide drainage to a city that lies 13 feet below high-tide level. A long sea wall helps prevent flooding. The city has an abundance of tree-lined streets and avenues and contains many wooden colonial buildings and markets.

Victoria Law Courts
Victoria Law Courts

Most of the main buildings are centred around the western region of the town. Around the western-central area is Independence Square and Promenade Gardens, the Walter Roth Museum of Anthropology, the National Library (built by Andrew Carnegie), the Bank of Guyana, the Museum of Guyana and State House (built 1852) where the President resides, and St. George's Anglican Cathedral. There are many churches, mosques and mandirs in Georgetown.

To the south of this region is where the neo- Gothic Town Hall ( 1889) is to be found, as well as Victoria Law Courts ( 1887), the Parliament Building ( 1829- 1834), the large Stabroek Market ( 1792) containing the prominent cast-iron clock tower that dominates the city sky line, the Roman Catholic Cathedral, City Engineer House, the Magistrate's Court, St. Andrew's Kirk ( 1818) and Independence Arch.

The northern area of the city near the Atlantic coast contains Fort William Frederick, a park and the Umana Yana, a conical thatched building built by Wai-Wai Amerindians using traditional techniques. It was built for the 1972 Non-Aligned Foreign Ministers Conference. The Georgetown Light House is a famous landmark.

Georgetown is the seat of the University of Georgetown and the Caribbean Community ( CARICOM) Secretariat. The University of Guyana is located in Turkeyen, on the city's outskirts.

City Neighourhoods

Georgetown is also the entertainment capital of the country. Sheriff Street is known for its energetic night-life and modern night clubs. It is said to be the street that never sleeps. Georgetown also contains some of the most expensive and luxurious neighbourhoods. Bel Air, Bel Air Park, Bel Air Gardens,Lamaha Gardens, Prashad Nagar and Bel Air Springs are well known as places for the rich and powerful. Most residents here are high ranking executives or government officials. The close gated neighbourhoods of the city are mostly concentrated in the northeastern part towards Greater Georgetown and the Atlantic.

Greater Georgetown

Greater Georgetown has the following important places:

  • Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Headquarters- houses the largest and most powerful political union through out the entire Caribbean.It also ranks second (after only the United Nations) in terms of being an active trade bloc.
  • International Convention Centre- The only of its kind in the country . The center was built to transform Guyana into the Brussels of the Caribbean. There is the Conference Hall, five smaller conference halls, a business center and a restaurant.
  • University of Guyana (headquarters)- Home to Guyana's higest institution of learning .
  • Cyril Potter College of Education (Headquarters)- Popularly known as the teacher's training college.
  • Ocean View International Hotel
  • Guyana Sugar Corporation -the largest employer and biggest corporation in the country.
  • Ogle National Airport - Guyana's national air facility .

Greater Georgetown is known to come alive in the night especially at the social scene of the seawall along the Atlantic Coast.

Suburbs

Suburban Georgetown is comprised of Greater Georgetown and Uptown Georgetown and contains the following suburbs of the city :

  • Republic Park
  • Houston Estate
  • Thirst Park
  • Nandy Park
  • Atlantic Gardens
  • Turkeyen

Travel

Georgetown is served by the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, 41 km south of the city. International flights/connections from Toronto, New York, Miami, London, Bridgetown, Port of Spain and Paramaribo are routine. There is also a regular coach service between Georgetown and Boa Vista in Brasil, and ready travel to Paramaribo, Suriname via a ferry crossing on the Courantyne River.

There are many hotels in the city, including: Blue Wave Apartments, Brandsville's Apartments, Campala Hotel, Cara Inn, Cara Lodge, Cara Suites, Florentine's Hotel, Friends Apartment Hotel, Grand Coastal Hotels (two locations), Hotel Arizante, Hotel Glow, Hotel Tower, Le Méridien Pegasus Hotel, Main Street Plaza, New Tropicana Hotel, Plaza Hotel, Rima Guest House and Woodbine International Hotel.