DURING the Atlantic Council Forum in the US last month, the Guyanese President highlighted the substantial continuing support for Guyana’s climate programme. According to President Dr. Irfaan Ali, the future of the nation will also depend on how the region and the world develop, in addition to what the nation does on its own.

The world is aware of Guyana’s energy sector development, and according to President Ali, the petroleum sector is critical to national development and positioning Guyana as a critical node for regional energy supply security. Since so many people are now discussing the petroleum component, President Ali said that Guyana hopes to have its national gas strategy prepared soon. He also hopes to set an example for conservation efforts around the world and ensure that there is a balanced discussion on the topic, including the roles of gas and oil in the transition to net zero. “We think any discussion on this subject that excludes oil producers or investors in gas is unbalanced and will not lead to the creation of policies that are both effective and fair.”

“We are championing this, and we have the credentials to champion this because, on the environmental side and on the oil and gas side, we are strong in both areas. We are now working on positioning Guyana as an important regional energy security hub. So, those are things that our policy formulation is based on”, President Ali said.

He continued, “Importantly, we also want to focus on Guyana’s economic trend towards 2030 and beyond. He noted that one of the most important facts of that growth, if one were to examine the first half of this year, is that Guyana’s economy grew by more than 56%. The composition of that growth comprises: the non-oil sector grew by 12.5%, and construction is growing by 44%. President Ali stated: “The economy is broadening, and that is what we want.”

Further, he said: “We are investing heavily in the infrastructure to strengthen other sectors within the economy to make them more competitive; to ensure that our economy is well diversified; and to build a country that is resilient, sustainable, and highly competitive in a world up to 2030 and beyond—a world that will be very complex and very different from the place that we know today. We are focusing on the traditional as well as the new sectors, and there is a big focus on food, energy and climate security.”

The policy formulation, he said, necessitates the role of digitisation and artificial intelligence. “We understand that we cannot do this in a straight-line manner; we cannot get to where we want to position Guyana in the world in 2030, and beyond that, if we do not pursue several complementary development programmes in parallel.”

“So, we have to adopt the most relevant technology today (now) and then work to bring the population abreast to meet that new environment. That would ensure our sustainability, our resilience, and our competitiveness. These are the types of things that are influencing us and moving us into a position in which we believe that we can make a significant regional and global contribution,” President Ali explained, noting that he wants to position the country as a global leader in energy, food, and climate change.

During a question-and-answer segment, President Ali was asked, “What can we expect from you and Guyana in 2024, looking ahead to the turn of the decade? How do you expect the economy to change and your relations with the rest of the world to change?”

In response, President Ali said, “What you can expect of Guyana is a responsible country, in which we bring balanced developmental aspirations with climate, energy, and food security. A country that will be strong in its democratic credentials with respect to the rule of law. A country that works towards bringing an equitable, prosperous mode of operation into its policy for the people of that country The country is moving ahead on a platform that will build out health care, an education sector that is second to none, and a country that occupies more of the discussion space and the policy-making space globally, especially in the areas of climate, energy, and food. A country that will remain steadfast in our commitment as a good global citizen and one that upholds the principle of multilateralism and supports a pro-poor approach to development.”

On a similar note, in his remarks delivered at the National Defence University in Washington, DC, last month, President Ali expressed that the modern world cannot create defense strategies without taking the effects of climate change into account, especially in the Latin American and Caribbean regions. The President emphasised that climate change is one of the most important vulnerabilities in the area and that it will take an annual investment of between $80 billion and $110 billion to adapt to it.

“This issue is devastating not only to economies and people but also to infrastructure, and included in that infrastructure is the military infrastructure… defence against natural disasters, and your asset that is required to provide that defence,” he added.

(This is part of a weekly series on LCDS.) The author can be contacted at cparkinson0206@gmail.com.