PHASE two of the Ogle International Airport project was commissioned on Wednesday  with President Donald Ramotar expressing optimism that the upgraded facility will further boost the country’s tourism sector, as well as promote the country’s already buzzing hinterland economies.
This phase includes the extension of the runway by 2,200 feet, now making it 4,200 feet, and 100 feet wide. The project was financed by the European Commission to the tune of 158M Euros.
President Ramotar said the improved runway is part of a progressive plan to develop the Ogle International Airport to a municipal aerodrome and port of departure and arrival for flights to regional and neighbouring countries.
He expressed the view that all should get on board as it relates to development of the country, and this will see the country reaping benefits in the long term. He cautioned that those who do not take advantage of this opportunity could more than likely end up in the dustbin of Guyana’s history. The President made these remarks as he referred to the recent cuts in the national budget by the parliamentary Opposition, that affect several critical developmental programmes.
Mr. Ramotar said the expansion and upgrading of the Ogle International Airport is in no way intended to replace the country’s existing airport, the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, or to give it competition.
He explained that with the growth of the tourism sector, Guyana, like the rest of the world, has a mandate to put in place systems to accommodate more travellers and aircraft.
He said the decision to expand the Ogle Airport was a cautious one that involved the private sector. He commended the sector for its administration of the facility, and expressed the view that it represented a model that should be adopted in other sectors.
The Guyanese leader made it clear that the government has no intention of taking over the operations of the facility, but has a mandate to ensure that investments there promote competition that will see the users of the services being the ultimate beneficiaries.
Meanwhile, head of the European Union Delegation here, Ambassador Robert Kopecky, said the idea of the facility upgrade is to support regional integration and communication. The ambassador added that he is quite pleased with the level of development and involvement of the private sector that saw several additional works being done at the airport.
He said that actions, such as the ones the private sector took at the airport, encouraged the European Union to invest even further, with the expectation that the private sector will continue to inject in the projects.

The Ogle Airport project has been a fine demonstration of public/private sector partnership in development which is the favoured approach in many jurisdictions and has been a largely successful one, particularly in light of where the private sector is seen as the “engine of growth.”
India, for instance, which has one of the fastest growing economies in the world, has been one of the countries where the private/public sector developmental approach has been successful.
India also has one of the most rapidly expanding private/public sector programmes in the  transport sector, among  developing countries.
During 1995-2006, about 230 of these projects, with an estimated total cost of US$15.8 billion, have been implemented in India. The transport sub-sectors accounted for more than 90% in terms of both number of projects and total value.
Impetus for private sector participation in the roads sector in India came in the late 90s, stemming from the government’s concern to address the challenges of rapid deterioration of the national highway network and the lack of resources to support its development and maintenance.

It is pertinent to note  that Guyana’s flagship project, the Amaila Falls Hydro project is another example of the public/private sector partnership approach in  Guyana and this project has the potential of dramatically transforming our national economy and landscape. But some are deliberately trying to stymie it because of a narrow political agenda.
What they hope to achieve by stymieing this project is anybody’s guess, yet these same persons continuously state that they are fully interested and committed in moving this country forward on the road to progress
It does not take much analysis to realise that they do not want this project to be successful because it would boost the support of the government. In other words, their real motive is to score political points.
It really boggles the mind how some people could be so ludicrous. However, as President Donald Ramotar noted: “Those who oppose development will end up in the dustbin of history.”