King Charles III has praised Guyana’s efforts to protect its forests and urged countries to restore biodiversity, as he and President Dr Irfaan Ali set out a vision for closer conservation partnerships.
Speaking on the sidelines of the second Global Biodiversity Alliance Conference and Financing Forum, held here in Georgetown the King said Guyana offered an important example of how forest protection and national development could be pursued together.
“It’s wonderful for me to comeback after 26 years to Guyana, particularly also my role as a patron of Iwokrama which is see is still going strong,” the monarch said.
The King recalled his earlier involvement in supporting Guyana’s low-carbon development approach and said he hoped its experience would be replicated elsewhere.
He called for urgent action to restore nature, including on degraded land, and highlighted agroforestry and mixed approaches to land management. “Here in Guyana, you have the most wonderful example of really special treasure of natural species. You have managed to keep an enormous percentage of your forest. That is an incredible achievement,” the king said adding:
“I admire what is happening here in Guyana and I look forward so much to seeing how the balance can be struck between developments and conservation.”
He also reflected on the difficulty of assigning nature a monetary value, noting that its worth cannot be captured simply in financial terms.
Protecting biodiversity, he said, was closely connected to human health and the interests of future generations.
Meanwhile, President Ali in his remarks reiterated that Guyana had maintained its forests while pioneering international financing for conservation, with revenues supporting national development and thousands of projects.
He described the country’s forests as living infrastructure that sustains ecosystems, biodiversity and community livelihoods.
The President said Guyana’s ambitions now extended beyond forest conservation to include biodiversity, sustainable cities and a stronger relationship between people and nature. He cited work on revitalising Georgetown and developing a “village of harmony” that would bring together Indigenous knowledge, traditional crafts, sustainable livelihoods and the protection of nature.
Sustainable Markets Initiative and other partnerships. These, he said, could bring governments, businesses, communities and international expertise together to mobilise investment and deliver practical benefits.
The Global Biodiversity was launched with 17 founding members in July 2025, has since grown to 147.
(Naomi Parris)
