THE recent visit to Guyana by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has further solidified Guyana’s position as a regional leader. Several commitments were made at the CARICOM-India Summit, attended by Prime Minister Modi and Caribbean leaders. Among the commitments made were greater assistance in the areas of human-resource development under the ITEC programme, training and capacity building for the region’s parliamentarians and a host of other strategic assistance both at the cultural, diplomatic and economic levels.

India is undoubtedly a strategic partner in terms of Caribbean development. The region is home to a significant number of Caribbean people whose foreparents had migrated to the Caribbean to provide cheap labour to the sugar plantocracy. Over the decades, a strong and enduring cultural bond evolved which continues to grow and deepen. This is particularly true of countries such as Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and to a smaller extent Suriname and Jamaica.

Beyond the cultural bonds, there are also the benefits associated with a rising global power. India is now a key player on the international stage and is a founding member of the BRICS grouping of nations which is now the leading trading bloc in the world in terms of population size. Indeed, the establishment of BRICS has now shifted the economic and financial hegemony away from unipolar dominance to one of greater multilateralism.

India is today the largest country in terms of population size, having only recently overtaken China as the most populous country. But it also has the distinction as the world’s largest democracy, which is of particular relevance to countries in the Caribbean region with fragile democracies. Guyana and Suriname were the most vulnerable in this regard, both of whom in the past suffered at the hands of military and quasi-military forms of governance with devastating consequences.

Both countries are now enjoying their best moments both from a governance and from a developmental perspective, with oil playing a transformative role in the economic and social well-being of the two countries. India with its expanding economy and increasing appetite for energy will no doubt have an interest in the energy resources of these two countries.

In the case of Guyana, a memorandum of understanding was already signed focusing on key and critical areas such as energy, trade, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, technology transfers, health, education, defence and infrastructure.

The visit to Guyana by Prime Minister Modi to Guyana is both historic and strategic and holds out great promise of a new and changing dynamic with huge economic and cultural gains for both the Caribbean and India. In this regard, credit must be given to Guyana for successfully hosting both the CARICOM-India Summit and the Indian Prime Ministerial visit to Guyana.

It is indeed a win-win situation for the region and India. As noted by President Ali, India is indeed a friend of Guyana and the Caribbean region.