RESOURCE mobilisation is a critical variable in the developmental matrix of any country; in this regard, the PPP/C administration has been doing a commendable job. Only recently, Guyana hosted a high-level delegation of African business leaders and entrepreneurs to examine ways of further deepening trade relations with Caribbean countries and the African continent.

African countries, like Guyana and other countries in CARICOM, have gone past the period of underdevelopment and are today important players on the global stage. This is manifested in the fact that African countries are now in a position to provide developmental assistance to Caribbean countries on favourable terms and conditions. Africa’s share of the global trade market, even though relatively small, has been showing some improvements in recent years and is likely to improve further with the expansion of relations with the Caribbean and other trading blocs.

In the case of Guyana, a loan of $US500 will be made available from the African Export-Import Bank to aid the country’s infrastructural drive. This disclosure was made by the Bank’s President and Chairman of the Board of Directors Benedict Oramah. According to Mr. Oramah, the overall objective of the Investment Forum is to collaborate with the Region in a number of areas and foster strong partnerships with nations.

As noted by President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, the forum is highly significant given the historic bonds between Africa and the Caribbean. It is a fact of history that Africa and the Caribbean are bonded culturally as a consequence of the slave trade, which saw people of African ancestry scattered across the Caribbean and, for that matter, the hemisphere as a whole.
Both Africa and Caribbean countries have advanced way beyond the dependency syndrome inflicted by the European colonising powers, which has been captured eloquently in the late Walter Rodney’s seminal work, ‘ How Europe underdeveloped Africa.’ According to President Ali, African, and Caribbean leaders now have the ability to come up with solutions to many global crises affecting their respective regions.

“We have the ability, and we have presented solutions to many global problems. We do not own those solutions and this platform is one such avenue through which we can solve our problems and find solutions for our problems among ourselves,” President Ali told the gathering of distinguished leaders.

The fact is that Guyana is becoming a key and strategic player on the regional stage and has been playing a lead role in critical areas such as food and energy security, as well as climate- mitigation measures. In this regard, full credit must be given to President Ali, Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo and the entire PPP/C administration for positioning the country strategically to take advantage of the opportunities available in the global arena in order to advance the interests of the Guyanese people and the Region as a whole.

Guyana’s modernisation process is picking up momentum thanks to enhanced revenues from its oil and gas resources, but as repeatedly stated by President Ali, such resources will be utilised to enhance the well-being not only of Guyanese, but of the entire Region. This is done in the true spirit of regional integration. Guyana is already the leading country in terms of agricultural production and food security and is well poised to also play a key role in energy security and climate change.