The Greater Guyana Initiative, in partnership with Recover Guyana and the Ministry of Education, held the commissioning ceremony for Project FLOW in Region Six on Friday, September 11.
The event was held at the New Amsterdam Secondary School (Multilateral).
The initiative aims to provide purified drinking water to more than 58,000 students across 141 public secondary schools, 10 TVET centres and four special education facilities by the end of 2029.
Project FLOW was launched last year, with the rollout beginning in Region Three in May 2026. Fifteen water purification systems were installed at several schools, benefiting 9,000 students.
In Region Six, 17 secondary schools and two TVET institutions have benefited from water purification systems, positively impacting 8,438 students and 1,164 teachers.
Delivering the feature address, Minister of Education, Hon. Sonia Parag, said the progress made thus far reflects the power of partnerships.
“Good partnerships are important. Great partnerships are even more significant, especially when the benefits are for our children. This is one such project,” said Minister Parag.
She encouraged the students present to view the new facility as more than a source of chilled, potable water to help combat the heat, underscoring that it is an example of what is possible when technology and infrastructure are combined to advance Guyana’s sustainability goals.
Minister Parag also urged students to care for the new facility responsibly and be good stewards of the environment.
Head of ExxonMobil Guyana Limited, Alistair Routledge, also delivered remarks at the event, noting that his company is pleased to work alongside the Ministry and other stakeholders on the project.
“More important than the natural resources, the most important resource in a country are the young people and that is what this project is about,” said Routledge.
Project FLOW is funded through the Greater Guyana Initiative, a US$100 million development commitment by ExxonMobil Guyana, Hess and CNOOC aimed at supporting social and economic projects across Guyana.
Integrated monitoring systems installed at each school will track the number of plastic bottles saved daily. It is estimated that approximately 25 million plastic bottles could be eliminated by the end of the programme.