THE Chairmanship of the Group of 77 (G77) and China rests on the shoulders of Guyana for this year, but the English-speaking nation, which sits on the edge of South America, will have support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Norway, in fulfilling its responsibilities.

The G77 at the UN is a coalition of 134 developing nations, designed to promote its members’ collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the UN.

According to a press statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, officials of the UNDP and Norway expressed their commitment to support Guyana, during a meeting with Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Karen Cummings, on the sidelines of the launch of Guyana’s Chairmanship of G77 and China, at the United Nations (UN) Headquarter in New York.

Administrator of the UNDP, Achim Steiner and President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Ambassador Mona Juul, who is also Permanent Representative of Norway to the US, spoke about their intention to support Guyana in fulfilling its critical responsibilities as the Chair of G77 and China.

According to the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Steiner referred to the long and productive relationship between Guyana and the UNDP, noting that the UNDP Country Office and the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean are supporting Guyana’s development efforts.

Prime Minister Nagamootoo, in response, said Guyana relies heavily on UNDP for unbiased technical cooperation and advice at the national level and is grateful for its support for Guyana’s G77 Chairmanship. In addition to what Steiner said, Ambassador Juul noted the convergence of issues and areas of work for ECOSOC and the G77, expressing the hope that a fruitful and close collaboration during Guyana’s Chairmanship, would result in meaningful progress on the development concerns of the group, but particularly for Small Island Development States.

She said Norway and Guyana have excellent bilateral relations, which can be built upon to advance their current responsibilities at the UN.

Prime Minister Nagamootoo thanked Ambassador Juul for Norway’s support over the years, and the commitment to working closely during this year to advance the international development agenda. He noted that Norway is seen as a model for Guyana, on the use of conditional cash transfers and the application of the benefit of oil revenues for its population.

UN Under-Secretary General for Economic and Social Development and Head of the Department of Economics and Social Affairs, Liu Zhenmin, during a meeting with Dr. Cummings, also said his department plays a key role in supporting all UN member states under the SDG agenda, but especially those belonging to the Group of 77 and China.
He spoke about the importance of advancing the action agenda elaborated by the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, as part of the Decade of Action. Zhenmin said further follow up discussions will be held with the Permanent Representative of Guyana, Ambassador, Rudolph Michael Ten-Pow, on how best to materialise this collaboration.

The G77 held its first organisational meeting under Guyana’s Chairmanship, to agree on its work programme priorities for the year. At the start of the meeting, Minister Cummings addressed the delegates, thanking them for their commendations and promise of collaboration. The meeting was chaired by ambassador Ten-Pow.

Several representatives, who were unable to speak at the handover ceremony due to shortage of time, expressed congratulations to Guyana and offered to work closely with the country in achieving success.

The G77 and China were briefed on the status of the Perez Guerero Trust Fund established by the G77, as well as on progress of preparations for the third south summit to be held in Kampala, Uganda. On the final day of the meeting in New York, Dr. Cummings met with staff of the Guyana Permanent Mission to the UN to thank them for their hard work and dedication to service.

She said this is a special moment of pride and honour for all Guyanese, especially with the outpouring of support and commendations at all levels, which were received in the course of the meeting. “However, the hard work has just started with a high level of expectation placed on Guyana’s Chairmanship. Minister Cummings urged staff to continue to give of their best, assuring them of the full support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and government,” said the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

Demonstrating strong support for and confidence in Guyana, the G77 and China had elected the state to serve as its Chair for 2020. At its 22 November plenary, the 134 Member States of the Group elected Guyana by acclamation without preconditions.
Guyana’s election followed a decision of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in 2019, to ensure that a regional candidate assumes chairmanship in 2020 of this largest negotiating group of developing countries in the UN. Consequently, for its accession, Guyana received the unequivocal support of CARICOM and the majority of countries in the group, including from Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America.

Guyana’s election as G77 Chair was hailed as a timely and fitting tribute to all Guyanese, with recognition of the good standing and capacity of the country to effectively undertake responsibilities at the highest levels of the international community.