Guyana to build Venezuelan refugee settlement near border

GEORGETOWN, Guyana – Guyana says it will set up a temporary settlement for hundreds of people who have fled the economic collapse in neighbouring Venezuela.

Citizenship Minister Winston Felix says his government will lease land near the northwestern border with Venezuela to provide refugees with shelter, food and medicine.

Felix described the facilities to reporters Wednesday as basic, with tarpaulins to provide cover from the tropical sun and outdoor toilet facilities. An estimated 500 Venezuelans have crossed into Guyana in recent months.

Guyana is one of the poorest and least-developed countries in the Western Hemisphere. A border dispute between the two countries has strained relations for years.

The United Nations says an estimated 2.3 million Venezuelans had fled the crisis-wracked country as of June. Most have gone to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Brazil.