Guyana

The Third General Assembly Meeting of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) was held on 13-14 January 2013 in Abu Dhabi, and the CARICOM Secretariat represented by its Programme Manager, Energy, participated as an Observer. Four CARICOM Member States were also represented, viz, Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Guyana, and St. Vincent and Grenadines.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana - In the movie, The Life of Pi, when the protagonist’s father seeks to reinforce his argument for the family’s move to Canada, he proudly declaims, “We will sail like Columbus!” The teenage Pi wryly reminds him, “But Columbus was looking for India!” And we all know that is why our region is called the West Indies. Almost unremarked, however, a curious inversion of the Genoese sailor’s geographically-challenged quest for the riches of the East has been taking place over the past 15 years.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – The Guyana government has criticised the decision by the opposition to introduce legislation aimed at repealing the benefits afforded to former heads of state. A bill to repeal the Former Presidents (Benefit and Other Facilities) Act had its first reading in the National Assembly on Thursday and follows a promise made by the opposition grouping, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), during the campaign for the last national elections that it would seek to that it would seek to repeal the legislation.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Western countries Wednesday pressured Guyana to ensure that Local Government elections last held here in 1994 take place during the coming months.
In a joint statement issued by the United States Ambassador D. Brent Hardt, the United Kingdom High Commissioner Andrew Ayre, his Canadian counterpart David Devine and Robert Kopecky, the European Union diplomat here, the Western countries recalled that during the 2011 national elections “one issue on which all political parties were in full agreement was the need to hold locl government elections.’

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Guyana is sending a delegation to the fifth session of the Inter-Governmental Negotiation Committee in Geneva later this month where an international ban on mercury will be discussed.
The meeting is scheduled for January 13-18 and local stakeholders, including officials from the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment, the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), and the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) met here on Tuesday to finalise the country’s participation at the talks.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana - As the old year turned, new regimes took hold in both the United States and China, acknowledged by most people in the Caribbean and elsewhere as the countries most likely to determine the international frameworks within which our countries will find it necessary to function.  There was undoubtedly some relief as President Obama was re-elected in November with a majority that seemed to indicate some degree of confidence in him on the part of the American people.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC –The Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) on Monday called on government to honour the agreement reached with the Region Council that brought an end to the crisis in the mining town of Linden last year including the deaths of three people.
“Moreover, we are calling on the government to ensure that all the resources necessary are made available to facilitate the conclusion of the terms agreed upon in the agreement,” the private sector group said.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Government and opposition were continuing their barbs over the need to reform the security system in Guyana with the embattled Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee saying it is “very regrettable” that the opposition parties were not willing to support the new initiative. The Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance for Change (AFC) have both said while they welcomed the initiative they were not prepared to work with Rohee on the matter.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Leader of the opposition grouping, a Partnership for National Unity (APNU), retired Brigadier David Granger says the opposition will not support a new security reform programme outlined by Home Affairs Minister Ckement Rohee earlier this week.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Haiti’s President Michel Martelly has started his six-month role as chairman of the 15-member Caribbean Community (CARICOM) grouping pledging to help CARICOM unite and overcome its economic problems as well as improve the socio-economic wellbeing of the region’s population.