AS climate change continues to be the primary threat globally, Guyana is committed to shifting the international conversation from a narrative of victimhood to one focused on developing solutions that tackle this devastating crisis.

Senior Minister Dr. Ashni Singh highlighted this on the United for Biodiversity: The Alliance Podcast on Wednesday.
Given the country’s strong track record of pioneering climate finance mechanisms, Dr. Singh expressed confidence that Guyana’s leadership will yield tangible results in securing innovative financing instruments to address biodiversity loss.

Dr. Singh reminded viewers that Guyana is a leader in global climate and environmental efforts through its Low-Carbon Development Strategies (LCDS), which have made the country a model for valuing forests and biodiversity.

He credited the leadership of President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali and Former President and now Vice-President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo for laying the foundation and advancing Guyana’s low-carbon trajectory.

Under their stewardship, Guyana has articulated a vision that protects the nation’s vast forest resources, as well as leverages them to access funding through programmes such as carbon credits.
“It was under the first-generation LCDS that we earned, of course, US$250 million under the historic partnership with the Kingdom of Norway, and it’s under the new LCDS that we’ve been able to conclude successive transactions selling our carbon credits,” Minister Singh stated.

Guyana’s work goes beyond advocacy. The country played a key role in creating the institutional framework required for forest monitoring, including the Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) system years before there was a formal carbon credit market.

Minister Singh noted, however, that the conservation of biodiversity, which is in grave danger worldwide, is receiving the same degree of innovation and dedication.
“This is why we are at the forefront of global debates on climate security, on energy security, on food security. This is why we’re providing the kind of leadership that we are, because our president and our government, we’re not content simply with repeating and regurgitating and lamenting problems,” Dr Singh emphasised. “Instead, we want to find solutions. And we adopt that posture in relation to global challenges, and we adopt that posture to national issues as well.”

Despite its size, Guyana is home to a wide variety of plants, animals, and birds, contributing significantly to global biodiversity. These ecosystems are vital to keeping the planet’s environment in balance.

Minister Singh reiterated the government’s commitment to set a good example and offer the intellectual leadership required to address climate change, biodiversity loss, and other urgent global issues.

“As a small country, we’re certainly at the forefront of the effort to find solutions to these problems. And we’re proud of the fact that we’re doing so. And we’re committed to continuing to exert every effort to ensure that we are able to find these solutions,” he said.
The Global Biodiversity Alliance Summit brings together policymakers, researchers, and advocates who are dedicated to creating workable, scalable solutions to safeguard the planet’s biodiversity. (DPI)