GUYANA has expressed its commitment to facilitating direct air links between Africa and the Caribbean and Minister of Foreign Affairs Carl Greenidge said that this can also better link the Middle East to South America and the Caribbean.

Minister Greenidge made these projections at the Third African Diaspora Meeting on promoting air links between African States and the Caribbean, hosted at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre on Friday.

The meeting coincides with the ongoing International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Air Transport meet which was themed ‘Promoting Connectivity for Sustainable Air Transport Development’ and which concluded yesterday.

At the opening ceremony, Greenidge said that the history of the Caribbean Region, wherein its people are part of several Diasporas, renders it to hold valuable the undeniably rich historical ties with peoples across the globe.

He added that with Africans among the Caribbean’s largest population, the Caribbean has maintained strong cultural links over the years since independence and these have strengthened through diplomatic and political relations.

In the case of air transport, the minister reminded that there was once a point in time where there were non-stop military flights between Guyana and Africa during the course of World War II and the Angolan Civil War.

With Guyana’s shared goals of enhancing commercial cooperation; facilitating tourism and promoting trade related opportunities among the two regions, he added that there is no reason that such relations should not be reconstructed.

“Unfortunately, efforts on the commercial front have subsequently waned and were broken, so much so that now we are required to reestablish them. In doing so, our goal is essentially to encourage the free and easy movement of our people between these two regions and importantly to maintain the longstanding fraternal bonds and to deepen all forms of corporation between us,” he said.

To the aviation representatives from several countries, Greenidge prompted them to recall the taxing and lengthy journey of connecting flights it would have taken many to reach to Guyana, stating that it is the country’s goal to reverse this.

Greenidge said: “Those of you who would have travelled to Guyana by air…would have had a taste of the cost frustration and waste—waste of time in particular— that such journeys involve. The Government of Guyana therefore commits to addressing that issue early and we welcome the support of the Caribbean Community and the African Union to that end.”
“Guyana, like the rest of the Caribbean, and like African States is committed to pursuing sustainable development. We hope, therefore, that this event will serve as an important step not only in future cooperation but in trade and services.”

The foreign affairs minister added that such connections between Guyana and Africa can reduce the distance between South American and Middle Eastern countries.
Meanwhile, he noted that the material benefits will include the elimination of visa requirements for passage through third countries while enhancing greater student and cultural exchanges between citizens.

“The Government of Guyana recognises that the challenges will not be solved by only dealing with the obvious constraints to connectivity at the national level. And, in that regard, we undertake to carefully examine the recommendations of the Andy Ricover Report on constraints to regional air connectivity between countries of the Guyana Shield and South America,” he said.

Once the connection with the African Continent is made in Guyana, Greenidge posited that there is also the possibility of establishing additional services to Regional hubs allowing departing passengers from Georgetown to reach multiple destinations.