Georgetown : The Guyana’s model Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) was discussed when Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Neatherlands Chapter Johan van de Gronden led a team of country executives to a meeting with President Donald Ramotar at his office today.
The Netherlands chapter is the WWF core funder for the three Guianas and after completing visiting missions in French Guiana and Suriname, van de Gronden decided to visit Guyana after four years.
He was accompanied by Head of Africa Programme WWF Belgium Officer Geert Lejeune, Regional Representative, WWF Staff in Suriname, Dominick Poluvier, Country Manger Dr. Patrick Williams, and Head of the Office of Climate Change Shaym Nokta.
The WWF, as a global conservation organisation and a main investor in the Guianas, regards the country’s LCDS as a very important model for the people of Guyana and the rest of the world.
The strategy which birthed from former President Bharrat Jagdeo’s Initiative on Avoided Deforestation launched in December 2008, has earned the country over US$70M in forest carbon payments through an unprecedented partnership with the Government of Norway.
“For us…, whose money still comes, for the very last part from OECD countries, the rich North you can say, world transfer from developed economies to developing economies, valuing both your carbon stock and your biodiversity is really essential. We can’t simply tell you… to continue to live in pristine economy and not develop your economy,” van de Gronden said in an invited comment to the Government Information Agency (GINA).
The organisation, formerly the World Wildlife Fund, works along with a mandate to promote conservation, research and restoration of the environment and van de Gronden believes Guyana’s LCDS is a model, the rest of the world can emulate and a learning experience for the WWF.
Since the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Guyana and Norway, the later country deposited two tranches into the Guyana REDD Investment Fund (GRIF) and in August $1.2B was released through partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for Community Development Projects (CDPs) designed by the Amerindian population.
The projects total about 166, eighty (80) percent of which are agriculture based, like cassava production in Kwaimatta, a cassava processing facility in Rupertee Village, a cash crop farm in Aranaputa, aquaculture in Annai Central a skills centre at Apoteri and an eco-tourism project Wowetta.
“Only if the citizens of Guyana are beginning to feel the value added and are beginning to see it in their daily lives, only then will there be continued support and then will be successful in the future,” van de Gronden said.
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