SENIOR Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance Dr. Ashni Singh on Friday signed a landmark agreement with President of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Dr. Muhammad Al Jasser, essentially to help prepare Guyana to meet its objectives in accordance with its ambitious Low-Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) 2030 trajectory.

The LCDS 2030 at reference sets out four inter-linked objectives for Guyana, the first three of which were the basic objectives of the initial LCDS since 2009. The fourth was added to reflect new local and global realities, namely:
• Valuing ecosystem services

• Investing in clean energy and stimulating low-carbon growth

• Protecting against climate change and biodiversity loss; and

• Aligning with global climate and biodiversity goals

According to the Ministry of Finance, the deal was reached in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where Minister Singh currently is for the annual IsDB Group Meetings, being held this year under the theme: “Partnerships to fend off crises”.

The arrangement, the ministry said Friday in a press release comprises of two pillars, the first of which comes under the scope of ‘green’, resilient and sustainable infrastructure, and primarily has to do with seeking to support the enhancement of base infrastructure across the energy, transport, water and sanitation sectors and affordable housing.

The second has more to do with supporting economic diversification and doing business, and addresses, inter alia, the integration of Information Communications Technology (ICT) in Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET), and Digital Financial Inclusion, and the development of the agriculture and tourism industries, as well as supporting the mining sector.

The four-day meeting, which began on Wednesday and ended yesterday, saw in attendance delegations from the Group’s 57 member countries, in addition to observers from international and regional organisations who have gathered to discuss development issues and institutional matters.

Last June, while attending an IsDB meeting in Egypt, the ministry said in its release, Dr. Singh, besides positing that the institution will continue to be a highly valued development partner for Guyana, “had underscored that in order to sustain strong non-oil growth into the medium and longer term, the government is putting in place the prerequisites for diversifying the productive sector, improving competitiveness and increasing resilience, as well as investing in adequate, reliable, affordable, and cleaner electricity, which is essential for a competitive manufacturing sector, expanding and upgrading transport infrastructure, improving internal access; ramping up food production by bringing more acreage under cultivation, and widening the range of crops grown, as well as animals reared.”

He is also quoted as saying at that same June 2022 forum, “On the climate front, despite being a new oil producer, Guyana places the highest level of importance on its climate credentials.

“Our Low-Carbon Development Strategy outlines a plan to ensure that the role of our standing forests in the global effort to fight climate change is recognised and remunerated in order to enable us to make the required investments to achieve accelerated economic growth along a low- carbon, climate-friendly trajectory.”