GUYANA recorded significant progress both at the regional and international levels in 2011, so much so that the country has advanced way ahead of other CARICOM countries in some areas. One such area is legislation, since Guyana was among the first CARICOM countries to pass the amendment to the Caribbean Community Free Entry of Skilled Nationals Act to include an additional nine categories of persons under the free movement regime.
At a press conference at Takuba Lodge on Thursday, Foreign Affairs Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett made reference to Guyana’s compliance with the requirements under the CARICOM Single Market (CSM), which is substantial since it puts Guyana ahead of other countries in this regard.
In 2011, Guyana was also host to the CARICOM retreat, during which several areas, such as education, agriculture, energy, foreign investment and information communication technology (ICT), were highlighted as priorities.

Guyana’s UNASUR chairmanship
Under Guyana’s chairmanship of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) in 2011, that body successfully achieved international status and a constitutive treaty.
In March 2011, the constitutive treaty was entered into when nine ratifications were secured, and Guyana, as chair, registered UNASUR with the United Nations (UN), giving UNASUR international legal status.
During the summit in Guyana, the additional protocol to the treaty (otherwise known as Commitment to Democracy Protocol) was ratified by three countries, including Guyana.
Under Guyana’s chairmanship, also, the vacant position of Secretary General was filled when Maria Emma Majia Velez was installed, and work also commenced on the General Secretariat, which is headquartered in Ecuador.

Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI)
Guyana hosted the Second Meeting of the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI) Commission in October 2011, engaging participants from the Caribbean, United States of America (USA), and The Dominican Republic.
This bilateral agreement between CARICOM and the US provides for capacity building in the Financial Investigative Unit of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), which would allow the tracking of illegal inflows and money laundering.

This meeting followed the first successful one held in Jamaica, where partnering states focused on sharing law enforcement information, cooperation, and capacity building, crime prevention, and maritime security cooperation.
Guyana also joined several countries from the Caribbean and Latin America in promoting firearms’ marking practices and strengthening efforts to combat the trafficking of illegal firearms in the hemisphere.

Bilateral relations Guyana/Venezuela
Guyana further enhanced relations with Venezuela, Suriname and Brazil, and Minister Rodrigues-Birkett said implementation of many cooperation initiatives will continue this year.
Among her expectations for 2012 is the completion of the homeless shelter, which is being funded by the Venezuelan government.

Guyana/Suriname
Guyana’s relations with Suriname were taken to a different level, as there is now very active cooperation in law enforcement. Discussions on the Corentyne River Bridge have also progressed to the preliminary design stage. This, the minister said, will be further advanced this year.

Guyana/Brazil
Much progress was also made with Brazil, as several meetings were held at the level of the Guyana/Brazil Frontier Committee.
Minister Rodrigues-Birkett announced completion of the feasibility study for the Linden-to-Lethem road, and will be sharing with Brazil as discussions for the project continue.
“We would like to see this project accelerate quickly, but we also have to be very patient,” she said.
Significant advancement was also made in terms of the language training by both countries. Brazil would provide experts to teach Portuguese in schools, starting in Region Nine, while Guyana would reciprocate, Minister Rodrigues-Birkett said, in the area of English.
The 4th Political Consultation meeting held in Guyana also discussed several issues, including the Linden-to-Lethem road and the additional list to the Partial Scope Agreement. Guyana has completed its internal work in terms of bringing the agreement to its implementation stage.

Guyana/China relations
The 11th session of the Guyana/China Joint Commission brought much rewards to Guyana, since several agreements were signed under that commission.
The minister outlined some of the agreements signed between the two countries in 2011, which include the provision of laptops, firefighting equipment for the Ministry of Home Affairs, and continuation of the Chinese Youth Volunteer programme. These were among those signed when the Guyana/China Joint Commission met in Guyana in 2011.

Grant agreement was also signed for 30 million yuan to fund projects that will be determined this year.
Meanwhile, Guyana attended the Third China Economic Trade Forum, where Guyana signed another grant agreement for an additional 30 million yuan, bringing the total funding for projects to 60 million yuan.
Minister Rodrigues-Birkett stated that Guyana also facilitated the arrangement for signing the framework agreement for the e-governance project to the tune of 215 million yuan.
Guyana also received a gift of two ferries from China, and those will greatly improve the transport services, particularly in Essequibo county.
In December 2011, Guyana also signed the NCN/CCTV Project, wherein broadcasts from the Chinese TV station will be done in Guyana on a regular basis.
Guyana also hosted the Eleventh Session for the Guyana/China Joint Commission on Economic Trade and Technical Cooperation, which saw the participation of China’s Ambassador to Guyana, Hu Wenzhe, and other key Government functionaries and Chinese delegation.

Multilateral relations
Guyana continued to advance its international visibility in 2011, and has submitted candidates for representation on several important international bodies.
These include membership on the Executive Board of UNICEF, for the period 2013-2015; Programme Coordination Board for the Joint United Nations (UN) Programme on HIV/AIDS, for the period 2013-2015; and the Commission on the Status of Women, for the period 2014-2018.
Guyana is also seeking representation on the membership of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the period 2024/2025.
Guyana also became a full member of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in December 2011, after working with that body, particularly as it relates to involuntary remigrants.
Guyana was also among the first countries in CARICOM to formally recognise Palestine as a sovereign state.

Guyana/Free Trade partnerships
The Foreign Trade and International Cooperation has again been merged with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and that sector focused on three key trade policy areas in 2011: Trade negotiations and implementation, capacity building and institutional strengthening, and trade facilitation through the ministry’s public awareness programme.
EPAs
In January 2011, Guyana was the first country in CARICOM to implement the Schedule of Tariff Implementation under the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). Several training and awareness sessions were carried out on this issue.

Free Trade agreements
An examination of the CARICOM/Dominican Republic Free Trade agreement is expected to facilitate continued discussions on how to expand the agreement in the area of goods and services.   (GINA)