A RENOWNED policy innovator has applauded the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government’s management of the oil and gas sector.
On Tuesday, David L. Goldwyn, President of Goldwyn Global Strategies and former US State Department’s special envoy and coordinator for the Office of International Affairs, lauded the PPP/C Government’s approach to managing the oil and gas sector.
Guyana’s discovery, he said, could not have occurred at a better moment, despite the unpleasant notions that continue to circulate about the country’s oil and gas sector. This is because the government now has the chance to learn from the mistakes made by other nations.
He made those remarks at the Centre for Local Business Development, where he gave a briefing of his research paper and expertise on “Managing Resource Wealth — What Have We Learned?”
With Guyana being a hub for opportunities, especially with its massive oil boom, Goldwyn said that among other elements, it is vital that the government doesn’t only develop the oil and gas sector but the traditional ones too in order to achieve a sustainable future.
“You have to be a country that is not just attractive for oil and gas investment, but that is attractive for all investment,” Goldwyn said.
This approach has been one of the core stances of President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, who has continuously maintained the position that his government will not put all their eggs into the “oil and gas basket.”
Owing to this commitment and dedication, Guyana’s economy saw a rapid growth sprout for the first half of 2023.
The nation’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by an estimated 59.5 per cent, in the first half of 2023, while the non-oil economy grew by 12.3 per cent.
“It is important to diversify and get things right. In Guyana, I think there are tremendous reasons for hope and that is [because] of the lessons learned on how to get resource management right,” Goldwyn said.
With the PPP/C Government hitting this target, he further remarked that Guyana has already rolled out other measures to get resource management right.
With the diversification of the economy, the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) to the Low-Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) and investments in traditional sectors such as health and education, Goldwyn said the PPP/C Government is well on its way.
He also said that President Ali is very receptive when he is receiving advice on how to manage the oil and gas sector.
Even though Guyana is producing around 400,000 barrels of oil a day, Goldwyn said that the future is uncertain and thus, it is important to make sure that things are being done correctly and that is what this current PPP/C Government has acknowledged.
