GUYANA is the only Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country that has a World Organisation for Animal Health Certificate (Office International des Epizooties – OIE), and the country is on the verge of receiving a second, Agriculture Minister Dr. Leslie Ramsammy disclosed  last Sunday night.

He said this next certification for Guyana is, undoubtedly, of significance as many other countries in the Region are still striving to achieve their first.
The OIE, a world animal health organisation, is the international body for epidemics and the United Nations agency that monitors diseases in animals, Dr. Ramsammy explained.
According to Wikipedia, the World Organisation for Animal Health is the intergovernmental organisation responsible for improving animal health worldwide. It was created by an international agreement as the International Office of Epizootics (still known by its French acronym Office International des Epizooties – OIE) on 25 January 1924. It is recognised as a reference organisation by the World Trade Organization (WTO) and maintains permanent relations with 35 other international and regional organisations. Its headquarters are in Paris, France.
He was speaking at the official opening of Rossignol Butcheries on Church Street, Georgetown, which is a modern butcher shop that features high- quality meats, bread and pastries, among other choices.
The agriculture minister said that although Guyanese are exposed to glaring headlines of negative reports, many good things are happening in the country, as he referred to the OIE certificate.
“Guyana was, a few years ago, certified as free of foot and mouth disease. And we are, at the moment, doing a national programme for elimination of brucellosis. The last case of brucellosis in Guyana was documented in 1968, 45 years ago and we are about to embark on the last step to the certification of Guyana. These are good things, ladies and gentlemen,” he declared proudly.
Minister Ramsammy told the gathering, too, that Guyana is a good place to invest, whether it has to do with local or foreign entrepreneurs.

RAISING STANDARDS
“We have proven that beyond a shadow of doubt. The size of the population, in terms of our middle class and affordability has risen. People demand better standards,” he noted.
He recalled that, many years ago, when he returned to Guyana, he worked at Woodlands Hospital and started the first automated laboratory in the country.
“I am glad, today, that there are more than 14 automated laboratories working in Guyana, providing high quality medical laboratory service. That’s the kind of difference we make when we raise the standards,” Ramsammy concluded.