Caption: Adam Smith Square, Woodbrook early on Ash Wednesday morning, after being cleaned under the NPUPS initiative. AZP News/Alicia Chamely

Summary

• Local Government Minister Khadijah Ameen says the NPUPS Carnival cleanup initiative was successful.
• Ameen said the programme began in February and aimed to keep Carnival spaces clean and safe for public use.
• She reported that workers began cleanup from midnight on Ash Wednesday and most areas were clean by 3 a.m.
• Cleanup operations were carried out on Monday and Tuesday and extended beyond roadways to beaches, rivers and campgrounds.
• Ameen thanked workers and regional corporations and said the Ministry will meet to ensure workers are paid on time.

 

By Alicia Chemely

THE National Programme for Upkeep of Public Spaces (NPUPS) Carnival clean-up initiative is being hailed as a success by Minister of Rural Development and Local Government Khadijah Ameen.

In an audio release on Wednesday, Ameen said the programme, which began in February, delivered on its mandate to ensure that spaces used during the Carnival season were cleaned and safe for public use.

Referring to cleanup efforts on Ash Wednesday morning, Ameen said: “Our coordinated efforts really bore fruit. We had workers on the road from midnight and by 3 am most of the areas were completely clean.”

She added that cleaning also took place on Monday and Tuesday during and after the festivities.

Cleanup efforts were not limited to roadways, she said, noting that exercises were also conducted on beaches, rivers and campgrounds for those who did not participate in mas.

Ameen thanked the workers who helped make the streets “clean and safe for masqueraders,” as well as the various regional corporations and officials involved in the effort.

“I want to take this opportunity to thank our workers who made our streets clean and safe for masqueraders, but also every regional corporation, our local government representatives who are out there on the ground, our MPs who are with us for the needs of our regional corporations, CEOs, engineers and public health officers who helped coordinate this programme,” she said.

Ameen said the Ministry would be meeting with the programme’s coordinators and the Ministry’s permanent secretary to ensure workers are paid on time.

She also commended all stakeholders in what she described as a “bumper Carnival,” and praised coordination among ministries in ensuring Carnival 2026 was successful.