| GUYANA GETS ANOTHER US$40M FROM NORWAY LCDS projects to translate into reality this year – President Jagdeo |  |  |  |
| Friday, 01 April 2011 05:35 |
| THE priority projects under Guyana’s revolutionary Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) will become a reality this year with development partner, Norway, announcing its readiness to release the second tranche of forest protection funds.  President Bharrat Jagdeo with Norwegian Minister of Environment and International Development Erik Solheim (second from right) and the Norwegian team at State House last night. (Cullen Bess-Nelson photo) This assurance by the President coincides with the simultaneous announcement by Minister Solheim that Norway will live up to its part of the agreement and contribute another US$40 million to Guyana for 2011. The country has already released its US$30 million for 2010 under the agreement. Minister Solheim also pointed out that the two countries need to find ways of speeding up the way the money is disbursed into the Guyanese economy while at the same time having the necessary mechanisms in place when it comes to anti-corruption and environmental and social safeguards. “We will discuss tomorrow (today) how we can do that in a proper manner,” Minister Solheim said, in reference to his packed agenda today during which he will also be meeting with a cross section of stakeholders including those from civil society. And in response to questions about transparency at the press conference, Solheim made it clear that concerns about the proper use of money are not only endemic to Guyana, but are concerns that are raised everywhere. “The strictest anti-corruption measures will be applied by the entities working with Norway, like the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) which means that there will always be a bidding and tender process if there is a procurement and the strictest international standards will be applied,” he said. “We do not want to interfere in how Guyana spends its money...but there must be strict standards for anti-corruption and also strict international standards for environment and social concerns,” the Norwegian minister said. Immediately prior to the press conference, Minister Solheim and President Jagdeo presented an updated ‘Joint Concept Note’ outlining the details of the agreement between Guyana and the Kingdom of Norway as regards the protection of Guyana’s standing forests as a means for the economic and social development of the country. Both men, during their presentation to a number of important stakeholders in the various fields and members of the Diplomatic community, and the media, also acknowledged how far Guyana has come and the commitment of both countries on the international stage towards combating climate change. President Jagdeo said that despite the global waning of interest in climate change issues, a small group of countries like Norway has kept the faith. “Without them, our global prospects for averting climate catastrophe would be grim. And I was pleased to work with Prime Minister Stoltenberg last year, when the UN Secretary General invited the Prime Minister and myself to join his advisory group on climate finance, and to witness firsthand the Prime Minister’s determination to make a contribution to the world’s fight against climate change,” said President Jagdeo. Highlighting two areas in which Norway has been particularly vital, the President said Norway has led the developed world in recognising that there is no solution to climate change without a solution to deforestation and forest degradation. “We all know the facts by now. We know that deforestation and forest degradation cause [almost one-fifth] of global greenhouse gas emissions, we know that addressing these emissions may be the only chance we have in the next decade of getting the world onto a 2-degree trajectory. And we know that this is affordable,” he said. “But the other area I want to draw attention to is Norway’s attitude. We all know well that there are a very large number of people out there who seek to stop progress, who delight in finding reasons why every intelligent attempt to address climate change should be made to fail. These climate change skeptics are every bit as dangerous to the world’s attempts to save the lives of millions as the rather more well-known climate change skeptics who cannot understand the science. And it would be very easy for countries like Guyana and Norway to lie down in the face of these climate change skeptics,” the President said. He said this is why he values Norway’s willingness to look beyond these skeptics, and to work to forge workable solutions to the challenge of deforestation and forest degradation. “We need to think about the young child in Paramakatoi who is just as entitled to internet access as a child in Europe or the United States. The Amerindian villagers who deserve legally binding title to their land. The small businessperson in Anna Regina who should have cheaper, cleaner energy. The students in UG who have the right to access the latest thinking on bio-diversity and how it can enrich our global economy. People across Guyana, from every walk of life: these are the people who matter, and for whom our work together must deliver meaningful results,” the President said. “And the partnership between us, which has grown in depth and quality over the past two years, provides the means to start delivering those results,” he said. PARTNERSHIP IS A WORK-IN-PROGRESS Turning to Minister Solheim, the President said: “So Minister, I think it is fair to say that our partnership is a work-in-progress, and that is perhaps the best compliment we can pay it. The hard work, resolve and willingness to learn from each other are the characteristics of our teams that are making the partnership effective. These characteristics will continue to be needed in the months ahead.” “As I said earlier, the lives of millions of people across our planet remain in the balance, and they will suffer unless we act on climate change. Norway has not wavered in its resolve to face up to this issue, and I thank you and the people of your country for staying firm in the face of global inaction,” the Guyanese head of state said. Minister Solheim responded by noting how good it is to be back in Guyana and see the development of this partnership. He acknowledged that it is a new model of partnership and development and that there will be mistakes and things taking time. “We are also making history because this is the first of its kind in the world,” Minister Solheim said. He said that because of the partnership, Guyana has much more influence in international climate talks and international affairs than “any other group of 700,000 people.” The Norwegian minister said that while ten years back countries had to make a choice between preservation and development, now they do not have to make that choice, since the two goals could be reached together. “What you are showing the world in Guyana is that there is no need to make that choice...you can do both. You can have drastic economic development but in the framework of sustainable use of the forest. That is the new development path of the world,” he said. “How can you tell a poor woman who wants education for her children that she must remain poor just to protect the environment?” he asked. “We must find a way of mixing [environment and development] and that’s what developing nations are doing and that’s why I am so proud of being your partner in this,” he said. DEVELOPMENTAL PROJECTS President Jagdeo, during last night’s press conference, also listed the priority projects to be invested with funds coming from the historic Guyana/Norway partnership that was sealed in 2009. Chief among them is the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project (AFHP) that will eradicate about 92 percent of the country’s energy emissions and replace it with cheaper, cleaner energy for Guyanese businesses and citizens. The project will have a 150-megawatt capacity carrying a plant and transmission lines from the site to the city. In July 2010, a framework agreement between the parties to the project was signed in China formalising the co-operation between the Guyana Power and Light (GPL), Sithe Global Amaila Holdings, China Development Bank, and the China Railway First Group. The agreement sets out the parties’ intention to reach financial closure within 12 months or sooner. President Jagdeo also made reference to the digital infrastructure which he described as key to the creation of a new economy in Guyana and will be made a reality with the roll out of the One Laptop Per Family Project (OLPF) and the stringing of a fibre optic cable across the coastline to avail cheaper and more reliable bandwidth. The LCDS also includes a clause for Amerindian community development and with the availability of sufficient funds, particularly from the Guyana/Norway deal, President Jagdeo was optimistic about the fast track of this process. “From now on, no indigenous village will be prevented from having their villages titled because of a lack of funds. Every forest village will be able to progress their Community Development Plan to create new employment and economic opportunity,” President Jagdeo said. The LCDS will also be on the curriculum of the school system and will be complemented with the construction of a world class Centre for Biodiversity in Georgetown. Proud of Guyana’s efforts to build such a revolutionary model, President Jagdeo admitted that it is not the most perfect but will be one that will be replicable worldwide and strike a balance between environmental concerns and progress. “The model will have teething problems, but we should not succumb to those who think we should not pursue it because the path would be a difficult one. It is difficult because of the magnitude of the problem. Catastrophe stares the world in its face; today we are on a pathway to destruction,” President Jagdeo said. Minister Solheim was lauded by President Jagdeo for leading the world in cognizance of the importance of forests in the fight against climate change, especially at the international forums where there have been painstaking efforts to reach an accord on averting the ravages of climate change. On October 10, the Guyana Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation Investment Fund (GRIF) was established and the first payment from the Norway fund of approximately US$30M was processed. GRIF is a financial mechanism for the ongoing cooperation on climate change between Guyana and Norway which the former will receive based on its performance on Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD). The Guyana/Norway deal was initiated after a pact was sealed between President Jagdeo and Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg in November 2009. The agreement was designed to develop a model, proving to the world that partnerships between developed and developing countries can save tropical forests. Last night, President Jagdeo expressed gratitude to Norway for its agreement with Guyana, Brazil and the third embryonic agreement with Indonesia. The Guyana-Norway partnership on deforestation and forest degradation is the second largest such partnership in the world. President Jagdeo feels vindicated in his belief that Guyana would be able to carefully steward its forest for the long-term if the right economic incentives were created, and the legitimate development aspirations of the people were not damaged. PULL QUOTE: ‘...We all know well that there are a very large number of people out there who seek to stop progress, who delight in finding reasons why every intelligent attempt to address climate change should be made to fail. These climate change sceptics are every bit as dangerous to the world’s attempts to save the lives of millions as the rather more well-known climate change sceptics who cannot understand the science. And it would be very easy for countries like Guyana and Norway to lie down in the face of these climate change sceptics.’ - President Bharrat Jagdeo |
| Last Updated ( Friday, 01 April 2011 05:44 ) |
Despite the Anti Government people and the opposition who try to stop this done deal,this additional$40 million show that the Norwegian believe in President Jadgeo and the works that he is doing for this country .
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