Cover photo: Port Kaituma District Hospital at its commissioning in May 2020. Department of Public Information.
Port Kaituma is a community in Barima-Waini, Region 1, within Guyana’s North West. A UNICEF regional profile identifies it as one of the region’s sub-regional administrative centres, alongside Moruca, while Mabaruma is the regional administrative centre.
The river and the wider district
The Kaituma River is part of the community’s geography and infrastructure history. Guyana Water Incorporated has documented the use of river water in the local supply system and efforts to develop alternative sources. Those reports should not be read as present-day water-quality advice; they help explain the relationship between the settlement and its river.
Port Kaituma also belongs in the broader story of Matarkai, alongside Matthews Ridge and Baramita. Reading the three profiles together provides an introduction to this part of Region 1 without treating its communities as interchangeable.
A healthcare role beyond the community
DPI recorded the commissioning of the Port Kaituma District Hospital on 24 May 2020. The report described its role in bringing hospital services closer to residents of the Matarkai sub-district. In May 2026, DPI reported further additions, including an operating theatre, maternal and child health facilities and a maternal waiting home. These developments illustrate Port Kaituma’s wider service role; current treatment availability should be checked directly with the health service.
Continue exploring through the Region 1 directory or the Essequibo directory.
Sources and further reading
- UNICEF: Barima-Waini regional profile
- DPI/GWI: water infrastructure report, 2018
- DPI, 24 May 2020: hospital commissioning
- DPI, 2 May 2026: hospital additions
