ON the occasion of Arrival Day 2017, the Government of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana recognises all the people of Guyana for their resilience, fortitude and unwavering dedication to nationhood and acknowledged the contributions of all our peoples towards the development of Guyana.

The peoples who came to this land, many under unspeakable circumstances, have each toiled and sacrificed and endured hardship for us to have achieved as we have and for us to be, this year, celebrating as an independent, sovereign and free nation widely respected within the community of nations globally.

We stand on the shoulders of those who have fought and struggled for the freedoms we now enjoy and which we must zealously guard. Our ancestry is diverse; our destiny is inextricably and irrevocably intertwined. We are, as our motto instructs, one people, one nation with one destiny.

Arrival Day affords us an opportunity to reflect on our triumphs and challenges as we reaffirm the Guyanese spirit of tolerance, inclusivity and brotherhood and a unified vision for a progressive, prosperous and cohesive Guyana for all its peoples.