THE Governments of Guyana and Brazil have held the preparatory meeting for the remarking of the borders between the two countries.

The exercise is aimed at solidifying the friendship between the two countries and demonstrating a mutual respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty.
The meeting, at which Guyana’s delegation was headed by Commissioner of the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GLSC), Trevor Benn, was held at the Ferrari Hotel, Roraima, Brazil on Saturday, while the marking process will commence on Thursday, November 16, 2017.

Guyana’s Consul General to Brazil, Ms. Shirley Melville, in her remarks at the start of the discussions said, the process is a significant step in the fortification of the relationship between the two countries. ”This morning is a step towards developing the relationship between Guyana and Brazil. We have been working together for a number of years and this is a continuation of building on that relationship,” she noted.

Her comments were supported by Dauberson Monteira da Silva, Head of the Commission on Border Demarcation for Brazil, who said the relationship between the two countries has indeed been a long one, characterised by good will, friendship and mutual respect.
He too, noted that the exercise will further strengthen the strong bond, which the two nations share.

Commissioner Benn in underscoring the importance of the discussion and the event to follow, said the issues of sovereignty and territorial integrity are important to the Government and people of Guyana.

“Our borders are very important to us in Guyana and we appreciate the cooperation from the Brazilian Government. Guyana is committed to the process and we are prepared to find the resources to ensure that this process is completed. We will continue to give support, financial and otherwise, to ensure that this process is completed. We have shared relations with Brazil for a long time and during our relationship we have been working to keep our borders clear so that we can identify the border marks,’’ Benn added.

To this end, the Guyana Defence Force and the GLSC have dispatched a team to be led by Adrian Cheong, a Senior Land Surveyor and Captain, Joselyn McAllister from the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and comprising too, of and three technical and field officers from the GLSC to facilitate the four-day process.

Benn in pointing out that Guyana has gotten Cabinet’s approval to fund some aspects of the process added that it is imperative that every country is able to identify its boundaries and have them established.

“The team will look at the marks, repair and update them for posterity. The integrity of one’s country is paramount and to ensure that our integrity is assured, one of the things that we do is to identify the borders to make sure that it cannot be encroached or is not encroached by others and since we have a really good relationship with Brazil it is easier for us to keep that border clean, clear and visible to all concerned,” he said.

The process was started in 1994 but was stalled for years due to funding issues on both sides. Due to the density of the forests in the border region, only four marks; BG15 to BG19 will be re-marked and re-done during the four-day exercise. The remainder will be done at a later stage.

However, at the completion of the re-marking process, a follow up meeting will be held between the two delegations to discuss the successes and challenges for future planning.