President Donald Ramotar says Government and the investors into the Amaila Falls Hydroelectric Project have moved much closer to financial closure and he said that the investment would see Guyana fully implementing its green strategy and catapult manufacturing and growth.
Ramotar was yesterday addressing a filled Guyana International Conference Centre on the 20th anniversary of the ascension to office of the PPP/C in 1992, where he chronicled what he said was the Government’s progress in taking a rundown country and turning it around through sound management of the economy.
He said that not only would the project be good for the manufacturing sector through cheaper and more stable electricity but also wean the country off high fuel expenditure.
Following the signing of a contract in Xi’an, China on September 11, 2012, a press release from Sithe Global – the developer of the Amaila project – said that financial closure is expected by the second quarter of 2012. It is expected that a due diligence process will commence before the financial arrangements are finalised.
Continuing to speak of new investments Government is making, he said that the new airport, for which a contract with a Chinese contractor has already been signed, will make Guyana a hub for international flights because of the country’s advantageous geographic location.
Ramotar said too that optimism remains high in the oil and gas sector and is confident that Guyana will become a player in the industry sooner rather than later. He said that the Georgetown/Lethem road and the deep water harbour will serve to expand Guyana’s trading opportunities.
The President said that October 5, 1992 began the journey that the country is still on. “Cheddi Jagan and the PPP/C were our deliverers and the nation must be grateful. He led this nation and its people in rebuilding Guyana,” said Ramotar.
He contended that the PPP has been a bulwark for the working people and the disadvantaged. Ramotar asserted that the party will continue to fight with its last breath to protect and promote national unity. He said that the freedom that was restored in 1992 cannot be quantified since it is priceless.
The President however acknowledged that the development of the country came as a result of the cooperation with international institutions.
“We can never be forgetful and dismissive of the [international institutions’] support for Cheddi Jagan in rebuilding the nation,” he said. “They have stood faithfully by our side in rebuilding Guyana,” he said to an audience which included members of the diplomatic corps.
He said that visitors to the country have commented positively on the visible changes made to the landscape by the Government. He said that good infrastructure has contributed to the productivity and output of the country.
The President added that the party was grounded in the view that people are the most important factor in development. He said that as part of the human development thrust of the Government, more than 100,000 persons have benefited from the housing programmes, widely acknowledged as one of the success stories of the PPP/C Government.
But he said too that a lot of resources are also spent on education, given the Government’s philosophy that education is important for ending poverty and for investing in the country’s future.
“Today we have achieved 100 percent universal primary education and we are working towards achieving universal secondary education before the first term is over,” he said.
He posited that Guyana has also made significant strides in health, noting that the country is “light years away” health-wise from where it was in 1992.
“Guyana is now a middle income country…no longer a HIPC (highly indebted poor country),” adding that the country has seen positive growth for the past six years. He said that inflation, which was in the triple digits before the PPP/C took office, has been greatly reduced, while production has gone up.
He noted too that life expectancies have been increasing and infant mortality decreasing.
He said that as a result of the changing fortunes of the country, more than $3 billion per year is spent on old age pensions and a further billion per annum spent to assist those persons in difficult circumstances. “For us, development is first and foremost human development. The progress that we have made so far lays the foundation for us to create [a better society] for our people,” the President said. Former President Bharrat Jagdeo, ministers of the Government and members of the private sector and labour movement were in attendance.
There were a number of cultural performances including African and Indian drumming, dances and poetry.
