PRESIDENT, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali and a delegation comprising several senior government officials, including Foreign Minister Hugh Todd and Foreign Secretary Robert Persaud, are currently in the United States to participate in the Summit of the Americas being held in Los Angeles.

This is the first time the United States of America is hosting the summit since 1994, when the first summit was held. It will be recalled that the first Summit of the Americas was convened in Miami, Florida, in December 1994 to promote economic growth; human rights; increase economic competitiveness; promote development; improve access to clean energy; strengthen regional security and counter illicit trafficking. The theme for this year’s summit is ‘Building a Sustainable, Resilient and Equitable Future.’

These are values that the PPP/C administration generally embraces. Even though all of the objectives of the summit may not have been fully realized, there can be no doubt that Guyana has benefited significantly over the decades from its participation in the summit. The summit provides a mechanism to bring together leaders from North, South, Central America, and the Caribbean to chart the way forward holistically and collaboratively. Civil society organizations, representatives of indigenous communities, civic leaders, and business executives are also invited to participate.

This is the 9th such summit which is being held against the background of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic; climate crisis; rising food prices triggered in part by the ongoing war in Ukraine; rising income disparities; high levels of migration to the North; and by no means least, continuing threats to democracy and democratic norms of governance in the western hemisphere.

The summit host, in this instance, the United States of America, serves as Chair of the event. Each summit focuses on critical areas of cooperation that is common to all the countries of the Americas. Through this mechanism, there has been a coordinated effort to tackle several burning issues, including the fight against corruption, which could undermine democratic governance and erode the rule of law.

Guyana has benefited substantially from the support of the United States and countries of the Organization of American States (OAS) to preserve and consolidate democratic rule. It is worth recalling that the intervention of both the United States and the OAS was instrumental in thwarting attempts by the APNU+AFC coalition to subvert democracy in the March 2020 General and Regional Elections.

Given the pluralistic nature of the countries that comprise the Americas, both politically and ideologically, it is not uncommon for differences in terms of levels of involvement and participation in summit proceedings. The United States, as summit host, has exercised its prerogative to deny the participation of Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, all of which have opted to pursue a development path that is incongruent with the neo-liberal model as practised in most countries in the hemisphere. Whether or not that is a sufficient reason to deny participation of these countries remains a subject of debate. However, one thing is clear, namely, that the decision did not sit well with some countries in the region, some of whom have opted to withdraw their participation in the summit.

In the final analysis, a sovereign decision has to be made based on the benefits that can be accrued through participation in the summit. In the case of Guyana, with its fragile democracy, threats to its territorial integrity, porous borders and other vulnerabilities, including climate change, it is only natural that the country has much more to gain by its active participation in summit deliberations.

Indeed, as a rising player in regional and hemispheric affairs, Guyana is now better positioned to take advantage of its participation to advance its economic and geo-strategic interests, especially in its hydrocarbon riches and low-carbon development trajectory.

President Ali has already made his presence felt on the international stage. His presence at the summit will undoubtedly further enhance Guyana’s profile as a key player on the hemispheric stage.