The Guyana Responsible Parenthood Association (GRPA) says it delivered about 2,000 cancer screenings to women and girls over the past 12 months, mainly in Indigenous, hinterland and under-served communities. The work was funded by the Greater Guyana Initiative (GGI), which is backed by the oil companies operating in the Stabroek Block.
GRPA gave GGI a special recognition award for that funding on Sunday, October 11, at its Pinktober Brunch at the Royal Hotel in Georgetown. The event was held to mark Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
The money went to a project called “Empowering Communities: HPV Education and Screening for Indigenous and Under-Resourced Populations in Guyana.” Under the project, GRPA took HPV education and screening out of its clinics and into communities in Regions One, Four, Seven, Eight and Nine. GGI’s press release did not say how much funding it gave.
GRPA Executive Director Kobe Smith said the funding allowed the association to carry out “2,000 cancer screening services in 200 communities” in the past year. He urged other private sector companies to fund similar work.
GGI Lead Alicia Bess-Anderson accepted the award. She said the partnership had brought screening “closer to communities across the country,” including to women and girls in rural and hinterland areas “who might otherwise have had limited access to these critical services.”
Minister of Health Dr. Frank Anthony also spoke at the event. He said groups such as GRPA help the ministry reach areas where it faces challenges in delivering health services.
“With the financing from the Greater Guyana Initiative, they have been able to go to places where we have had some challenges, but when we combine our efforts, we can meet many more people,” Dr. Anthony said.
HPV, or human papillomavirus, is the main cause of cervical cancer. Screening and vaccination are the main ways to prevent the disease.
GGI is a 10-year, US$100 million programme funded by the three Stabroek Block co-venturers: ExxonMobil Guyana, Hess Guyana Exploration and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana. It funds projects in education, health, the environment, capacity building and economic diversification.