Luncheon explains…
By Priya Nauth
HEAD of the Presidential Secretariat (HPS), Dr Roger Luncheon said Guyana’s historic low carbon development strategy, which seeks to set the example for the rest of the world about the appropriate responses to climate change, is all about development.

He proffered the explanation during his weekly post-Cabinet media briefing on Wednesday at Office of the President, Shiv Chanderpaul Drive, Georgetown, after President Bharrat Jagdeo on Monday formally outlined Guyana’s policy which aims to transform the national economy to mesh with a new global climate change regime.

Speaking at the Guyana International Conference Centre, the Head of State told a wide cross-section of stakeholders: “What we are trying to do in Guyana has never been tried in the world.”

President Jagdeo said the Monday deliberations were just the beginning of the consultative process on the documentation through which the Government is seeking to reconcile competing interests.

He said Norway is helping the consultation and supporting a study to assess the state of forest law enforcement and governance here.

Luncheon said: “The development strategy was launched on Monday and the point needs to be made that the strategy is all about development. Development that is designed around a low carbon economy.”

“The emphasis on the low carbon feature in the strategy accords with the overwhelming concerns about the global environmental health adversely affected by human activities over the past century.

“For Guyana to continue to develop its economy in a low carbon way, the strategy is intended to contribute to climate change mitigation through Guyana’s commitment to avoided deforestation, a commitment that sees almost the entire rainforests of Guyana being preserved,” he reminded.

Luncheon, who is also the Cabinet Secretary, hinted that compensation for preserving standing forests is the reasonable expectation of Guyana and other rainforest countries.

“International financial support for nations preserving standing forests must become a part of the post 2012 Kyoto Protocol of the Climate Change Convention,” he insisted.

CENTRAL PLANK
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) is trying to forge a successor agreement to the current Kyoto Protocol at Copenhagen, Denmark, in December and President Jagdeo has been leading this country’s lobby for forest preservation to be a central plank of that new convention.

Luncheon underscored that the approach which was unveiled Monday presents two tasks for the Administration.

“One that calls for work with Guyanese to consolidate the national position in support of the policy and the second is working with the international partners to get agreement on a feasible market financial solution on the compensation for services provided by standing forests, specifically carbon trade,” he stated.

Further, he said the national consensus that is expected from the first task, is targeted to be arrived at by the end of September 2009, following rounds of national and sub-national consultative activity.

On the international front, Luncheon said seeking the market solution for compensating rainforest countries will continue to be the subject of aggressive action and negotiations by Guyana among the stakeholders, rainforest nations and the developed world that have already subscribed to the Kyoto Protocol and are anticipated to subscribe to its renewal after 2012.

He announced that three months of consultations would commence in about a week’s time and see the Administrative Regions One (Barima/Waini), Seven (Cuyuni/Mazaruni), Eight (Potaro/Siparuni), Nine (Upper Takutu/Upper Essequibo) and Ten (Upper Demerara/Berbice) being targeted.

In that duration, the documents would be explained and opportunities provided for stakeholders in those regions to have the greatest clarity about the strategy, Luncheon assured.

“It is anticipated that an awareness programme would also be launched,” he revealed.

“Certainly the ability of the stakeholders, particularly special interest groups, to meet among themselves, supported by the Administration with resource persons and access to information, it is anticipated that that offer and opportunity would essentially lead to the September refinement of the strategy to one that is embraced by Guyana,” Luncheon posited.