– vows to continue good cooperation trend between two countries
The more-than-30 years of friendly relations between Guyana and China have led to the fulfillment of major developments in the country’s capital and human resource capacity and new Chinese Ambassador to Guyana Yu Wenzhe promises to continue the cooperation trend between the two countries.
The Ambassador yesterday presented his Letters of Credence to President Bharrat Jagdeo in the credentials room at the Office of the President, replacing his predecessor Zhang Jungao who served three and a half years in Guyana.
At the accreditation ceremony were Minister of Labour Mazoor Nadir performing the duties of Foreign Affairs Minister and Director General in the Foreign Affairs Ministry Elisabeth Harper.
The new ambassador told the media about some of his immediate priorities while serving in his capacity, which would include efforts to enhance the political thrust and respect between the governments of the two countries as well as the “win-win” economic cooperation.
“We have many projects, some of them are already finished, like the Guyana International Conference Centre, (GICC), some are still being constructed, and I hope we will have more projects in the pipeline which will be finalised as soon as possible,” Ambassador Wenzhe said.
The GICC has been serving well as a suitable venue to accommodate regional and international meetings and conferences.
Guyana’s plan to modernise its sugar industry was complemented by a new state-of-the-art factory at Skeldon constructed by the Chinese and commissioned in August 2009.
In the making are two ferry vessels which are under construction and will hopefully come on stream next year. Additionally, with the support of a preferential loan from the Exim Bank of China, the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) transmission line project is scheduled to start shortly.
The two countries have also benefited from a number of personal exchanges, some as recent as last month, when the tenth batch of the Chinese medical team arrived to begin services at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation and the Linden Hospital Complex.
Volunteers have also been dispatched to serve in the agriculture, education and mining sectors, while dozens of Guyanese students are now pursuing their master’s degrees in Chinese universities with scholarships offered by the Chinese Government.
Ambassador Wenzhe assured that the two countries will benefit from more people to people contact, noting that “China, as a good friend and brother, will continue to provide assistance to the best of our ability to our brotherly Guyanese people.”
The relationship between the two countries dates back to 1971 when an Agreement on the Mutual Establishment of Commercial Offices was signed, leading to the setting up here of China’s Commercial Office.
Guyana is the first English-speaking Caribbean country to establish diplomatic relations with China and has since enjoyed smooth, long-term and friendly relations with a frequent exchange of high-level visits and close cooperation in the international arena. (GINA)