PRESIDENT Donald Ramotar’s appointment to the steering committee put together by United Nations Secretary General Ban-ki Moon to review the education system around the world adds to the list of Guyana’s accomplishments in the international arena.

According to Education Minister Priya Manickchand it can be argued that the appointment vindicates the world recognition Guyana has been gaining for its achievements over the years, particularly in the education sector, which is today the best it has ever been in history,.
It was announced on September 8 that the Guyanese Head of State was invited to serve for a period of one year on the Group of Member States Champions of the Education First Initiativethat will be launched on September 26 at the General Assembly.
President Ramotar credited his appointment to the “tremendous” work that is being done by all stakeholders who have over the years served with loyalty in the country’s education system.
The call for a review was spurred by the UN Secretary General’s concerns that with the 775 million illiterate adults and 61 million out-of-primary-school children, the 2015 target to provide education for all may not be reached.
The Initiative aims to raise the visibility of education on the global agenda, and focuses on getting every child into school, improving the quality of learning and fostering global citizenship.
In consultation with UN agencies and other key partners, UNESCO was entrusted with setting the vision of this Initiative that addresses persistent challenges and taps the potential of education to make development sustainable, the UNESCO website stated.
With President Ramotar being appointed a member, coming from a country where universal access to primary education has been achieved, it is hoped that a practical resolution will be forthcoming.
The fact that the expertise of Guyana is being sought after on global issues, in a rather unprecedented way, should be highlighted; but it also speaks volumes about the transformation in the country that now warrants the attention of the international community.
The fight against climate change in particular propelled Guyana’s image to the world and earned the country funding through a model forest climate services arrangement with the Government of Norway.
A historic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Kingdom of Norway will see the country earning up to US$250M in forest carbon payments by 2015. The Norwegian Government made good on its promise to disburse two tranches totalling US$70M to the Guyana Redd + Investment Fund after Guyana discharged its obligations in implementing the terms and conditions in the MoU.
Credit must be given to 2010 Champion of the Earth Awardee, former President Bharrat Jagdeo, whose Initiative on Avoided Deforestation, launched in 2008, has taken Guyana to the point where it is today.
The former president was named by TIME Magazine as a Hero of the Environment, and in 2010, he was appointed by the UN Secretary General to the high-level panel, which also included former British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown; Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia; and Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg of Norway, to shore up climate change funding.
Under his leadership, Guyana co-chaired the Interim REDD + Partnership with Germany, with the aim of scaling up actions and finance for initiatives to reduce emissions from REDD+ in developing countries.
In 2011, he was invited to join the Board of Directors of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) and was appointed roving ambassador to forest basins when leaders from countries in the Amazon, Congo and Borneo-Mekong met in June.
Diplomacy also played a crucial role in Guyana’s image overseas and is considered stronger today than ever before, particularly with neighbours at the South American borders that in the past had issues over territory.
Guyana’s relations with Suriname and Venezuela, for instance, have been characterised by a resolve to put behind the issues that had in the past botched their relations and focus on what is binding. Guyana and Suriname in particular have agreed to revive the border commission to build on trust between the two nations and meet at least once every six months.
Appointed overseas missions have been aiding the “positive” image abroad. Mr. Talbot headed the list of six key diplomatic appointments made by the Government of Guyana in January last when he was appointed as this country’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, with the rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.
Recently he was appointed head of the Economic and Financial (ECOFIN) Committee for the 67th Session of the General Assembly. ECOFIN is a committee within the United Nations dealing with issues relating to global finances and economics. It is one of the six Standing Committees of the General Assembly.