… in keeping with international obligations under Montreal Protocol
As Guyana continues to advocate protection of the ozone layer by reducing the consumption of ozone-depleting substances being used, Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud yesterday commissioned a walk-in freezer, refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment at the Government Technical Institute (GTI), Woolford Avenue.
The equipment, valued at $44.3M, will significantly improve the technological environment in which trainee refrigeration and air condition technicians operate. This initiative is in keeping with international obligations to which Guyana signed on.
Minister Persaud, while addressing the gathering, said that there are serious problems associated with the use of substances that deplete the ozone layer, and as such, countries signed on to the Montreal Protocol of 1987.
He said that while Guyana has taken its obligation seriously, the country has been ranked one among a few that has exceeded its obligations within the context of the Montreal Protocol which deals with the phasing out of Chloroflourocarbons (CFCs).

“This shows that our government is very serious when it comes to the issue of protecting our environment, when it comes to the issue of ensuring that our climate system is not further harmed and, if we look at the news, you can see that increasingly the effects of climate change is affecting developing as well as developed countries,” he said.
Minister Persaud posited that developed countries should also take up their responsibilities, as small, developing countries with limited resources are doing to protect the environment.
As the world continues to face the catastrophic effects of climate change, there are still a few naysayers who continue to blurt adverse comments that climate change does not exist and, according to the Agriculture Minister, this has caused several countries to be reluctant to take steps that are necessary.
“I want to see through this project to demonstrate that we are serious and that we are committed to our obligations; and that in fact we are doing what it takes within our own context to positively impact all the efforts that are being made to reduce the threat to the ozone layer,” he said.
The project, which focuses primarily on training and capacity building, has seen the training institute being equipped for the first time with a training facility.
Similar facilities have also been implemented at the New Amsterdam and Essequibo Technical Institutes, Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), Port Mourant Training Centre, and the Association for Private Refrigeration Technicians.
“In Guyana, we have taken a very integrated approach in terms of dealing with climate change. We need to have an integrated approach if we are going to successfully deal with this challenge…this will allow us in the long term to continue to be consistent with our obligation to fulfil the promises we made internationally, as well as to assure the international community that we are very serious about protecting our climate system,” he said.
The United Nations Development Programme(UNDP) Resident Representative, Chisa Mikami, while expressing appreciation for the initiative, said that the equipment will ensure that activities to protect the country’s ozone layer continue.
She said that while the intervention will assist Guyana in phasing out the use of ozone-depletion substances, UNDP is pleased to be contributing to the successes of the country, as the organisation has always contributed to the protection of the ozone layer.
While lauding the country for the role it has played in the protection of its ozone layer, she said, “Guyana is currently way ahead of many counties in this regard, and for this you must be lauded.”
Guyana acceded to the Vienna Convention and Montreal Protocol on August 12, 1993, and in October 1997, a country programme to phase out the use of ozone-depleting substances was prepared.
In this regard, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), was entered into with the UNDP for the continued training of refrigeration technicians and customs officers, as the Ministry of Agriculture has been the designated focal point in Guyana for the implementation of activities under the Montreal Protocol.
A National Ozone Action Unit within the Hydrometeorological Service has also been established, with  responsibility for coordinating activities to control and phase out the use of ozone-depleting substances.
Another MOU, through a multi-lateral fund via the UNDP, will also be inked shortly to assist with the phasing out of HCFCs.  This is valued at US$66,000. (GINA)