ATTORNEY-GENERAL and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall, S.C., on Friday stated that work must be done on “multiple tracks” to fast-track the modernisation of Guyana’s legislative landscape.

Nandlall made these remarks during the Guyana Bar Association’s Law Symposium held under the theme, “New frontiers in law, preparing for the future”, which was held at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre as part of the second annual ‘Law Week’ activities.

During his address, he stated that he is of the view that conveying the law to a new frontier in a futurist Guyana can only be truly achieved by a multifaceted approach.

Against this backdrop, he told those gathered that the government has been forging ahead with this three-fold modernisation which will include the legislative agenda, institutional strengthening and boosting human resource capabilities.

He said that Guyana’s statute books contain the most archaic statutes in the English-speaking Caribbean, which he added may not have been visited with amendments decades ago.

Nandlall said: “It is not difficult to appreciate that a comprehensive review of a large body of our statute laws is requisite in order to bring them in consonance with a modern Guyana.”

While this is a herculean task, he indicated that it must be undertaken statute by statute even as he mentioned that this task has begun.

As part of this, a complete review of Guyana’s Summary Jurisdiction (Offences) Act has been completed. He disclosed that an amendment bill is in draft stage and should be ready to be tabled in the National Assembly later in the year.

“As time is not on our side, we have to operate on multiple tracks in order to modernise our legislative landscape,” he remarked while noting that work is currently ongoing to craft new legislation that will meet the demands of new and emerging sectors in the country.

Consequently, the Legal Affairs Minister remarked that while on the thrust towards modernisation, several modern pieces of legislation have already been enacted. He added that many more are in the works across several sectors of the country.

In the oil and gas sector, he highlighted the new petroleum bill along with related pieces of legislation in the sector relating to insurance, financing, the environment and land among other things.

As it relates to the health sector, Nandlall added that the government has also enacted modernised laws inclusive of the Tissue and Organ Transplant Act, among others.

He told those gathered that the government has also been pursuing collaborations with international healthcare providers to establish new facilities across the country.

This, he said requires the establishment of a modern medical statutory regulatory framework to meet the standards of international healthcare providers.

Meanwhile, in agriculture, Nandlall stated that while Guyana has been identified to play a role in ensuring food security in the region, the country has been working with developmental partners on bills for that sector.

According to the Attorney General, these bills will prepare Guyana for its role as an international agro-processor, producer and exporter of food and other products.

He then indicated that this is the legal trajectory that the country is on currently.

“There is no uncertainty in relation to the developmental agenda of Guyana. The unvarnished truth is that the law, as the foundation of civilised society, cannot remain stagnant,” Nandlall concluded.