AS government inexorably forges ahead with its delivery of pre-election promises to the Guyanese people, there are forces just as relentlessly bent on destroying the fabric of the nation on which unity can be achieved and progress catalyzed to optimum capacity for growth and development.

The content of the Growth in the Americas Memorandum of Understanding signed between Guyana and the United States projects support from the U.S. that will facilitate the construction of several infrastructural projects to upgrade and build new facilities and systems in Guyana. The United States clarified that construction and facilitation of these proposed landmark projects will be conducted in a fair and transparent manner, with no political ties.

The framework of these bilateral agreements was programmed between the Government of Guyana and U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo during his visit to this country, subsequent to the March 2 elections, and was signed between Secretary Pompeo and Guyana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Todd.
These cooperative ventures will enable Guyana to achieve the realisation of several new projects in the infrastructural and energy sectors long in advance than the country’s projected action plan, given its fiscal constraints.,

During the signing ceremony at State House, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Audrey Waddell observed that the joint agreement will facilitate collaboration between Guyana and the United States in identifying and implementing joint ventures in infrastructural growth, integration, and energy security.
According to the terms contained in the collaborative agreement, infrastructure within the context of the framework refers to water, energy and hydrocarbons, buildings, airports, basic sanitation, information technology, logistics infrastructure, roads, railways, bridges, ports, and tunnels.

Ms Waddell posited: “The framework will also help catalyze private capital and facilitate financial market growth for infrastructure development by identifying programmatic and project-specific investment opportunities,”

Coordination, supervision and oversight will be the responsibility of a working group comprising senior representatives from both countries. This group will also be tasked with the formulation of a work plan, projected to be developed to fast-track achievement of the objectives of the framework within an estimated three months of its effective date.
Secretary Pompeo was adamant that all foreign direct investment will be conducted with best business protocols– fairly and transparently.

He asserted: “I think every country understands that when America shows up we ask for nothing more than a fair shot at the competition, rule of law, contracts that are enforceable, a set of property rights. We don’t apply political pressure connected to our commercial enterprises,” even though he recognised that there are other nations that operate very differently, He assured Guyanese that acceptance of U.S. tenders would not be forced through any kind of pressure – political of otherwise — averring: “That’s not how American businesses roll. We show up; we hire locally. We are great environmental stewards. We abide by the rule of law. We respect countries’ sovereignty. Those are the things that I think nations are looking for, and I think the new leadership here in Guyana is looking for.”

Secretary Pompeo’s assurance that all collaborative ventures will be executed with goodwill between, and to mutual satisfaction and benefit of, both countries; is gratifying to all patriotic Guyanese who have the nation’s interest at heart; but, sadly, the perennial naysayers and doomsayers are in their usual negative mode and prognosticating consequent doom-and-gloom scenarios. Worse, they are strategising to effect the failure of the planned collaborative initiatives, even before any concrete plan has been formalised, nor the fructification of any joint venture realised.

However, government is undeterred and is forging ahead with a progressive, people-centric development, by leaps and bounds, brilliantly creating fiscal space in a destroyed economy and engendering hope in a previously despairing nation.

With “big brother” Secretary Pompeo watching over the Guyanese nation, the government will achieve Guyana’s full potential for economic growth and social development, hopefully within a short timeframe.