–          as Guyana advanced an aggressive legislative agenda

OVER the past five years, Guyana’s legislative landscape has seen a rapid transformation with the presentation and passage of over 100 bills.
This legislative agenda has been pushed since the assumption of office by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) in 2020, all aimed at promoting modernisation.
Prior to the dissolution of the Twelfth Parliament this year, approximately eight bills were passed, one such was the critical Oil Pollution Prevention, Preparedness, Response and Responsibility Bill, which brought the implementation of prevention, restorative and compensatory measures in relation to oil spill incidents.
That bill, it was noted, came at a critical period in the country’s economic history and is vital to safeguarding Guyana’s ecosystem from the effects of oil spills.
Also passed in 2025 were two bills to improve regional co-operation on the criminal justice system and crime prevention, the Regional Security System and CARICOM Arrest Warrant Bills.
However, in 2024, some 21 bills were passed in the national assembly, one such critical bill was the Open Data Bill, which was hailed as the cornerstone of the PPP/C administration’s commitment to transparency, innovation, and responsible management of public data.
That bill was further described as a critical component in the government’s legislative agenda aimed at modernising governance and leveraging data to improve the lives of citizens. It mandates public agencies to make non-sensitive data accessible to the public, which fosters greater accountability and transparency across government institutions.
At the end of 2023, it was reported that just around 78 bills were passed in the National Assembly.
The Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Gail Teixeira, at that time, noted that what the government has been engaged in is bringing a number of pieces of legislation that are transformational and modernising the legal framework of the country.
Notable ones included the Digital Identity Card Bill and the Planning and Development Single Window System Bill, all critical parts of the move towards modernisation of various sectors to bring in new technology and new service systems.
Guyana has been at the forefront of transformative legal reform addressing the country’s rapid economic growth and changes.
The Attorney General, Anil Nandlall, had said that if changes in the legal sector are not made, then the country will be moving apace while the legal system is left behind.