Georgetown: In order to develop Guyana a procurement legislations must be enacted, a National Policy for the Development of Guyana must be addressed, Energy Security and Independence is needed, a roadmap for diversification of the economy is vital and the state must move away from ownership of companies since it always ends up not being profitable.
These perspectives were shared recently by former Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar during the 23rd Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association Awards and Dinner held at Pegasus.
Under the topic “Managing Oil and Gas Revenues – experiences and lessons learned from Trinidad and Tobago” the Former Prime Minister who is now opposition leader said her country in 1857 drilled its first well drilled for oil at 61 metres deep in the vicinity of the Pitch Lake by the Merrimac Company.
From the experience gained, she recommends that Guyana should focus on developing a National Policy for Development and leadership at the Governmental level which needs to be based on a national vision for the improvement of the lives of all in society.
“I recommend a National Policy for Development of Guyana, one that includes contributions from the Government, the Opposition, Labour, Civil Society and the business community be pursued,” she said.
Underscoring that in T&T although attempts at this process have been made with policies such as Vision 2020 and now Vision 2030, Persad-Bissessar said these are not inclusive and have been shown to be biased in favor of a particular political ideology.
She said unbalanced policies do not benefit the people of the country.
“The sale and production of resources must be able to not just move the GDP rankings but have a tangible effect on the daily life of every single citizen in the country,” the former Prime Minister said.
Adding that leaders will need to make bold and brave decisions to move industries forward whilst at all times ensuring that the Social Safety net covers the most vulnerable in society, she said this task also requires vision and agility in navigating the perils of volatile pricing and resource availability.
Further, Persad-Bissessar said it is imperative that a legislative framework be enacted and such legislation needs to be robust to protect the country’s patrimony whilst at the same time not driving away investors with endless bureaucracy.
“Such a framework is essential for ensuring that multi- nationals contribute adequately to the development of Guyana even as they invest and benefit,” she said.
However, she said diplomatic relations with other countries and agencies need to be fair and firm, whist ensuring that that Guyana gets the best deal possible.
“It is exceedingly important that negotiators are the best in class and highly specialized in their fields of expertise. Local and Regional Academia including our own University of the West Indies now listed by the World University Rankings as being in the top 5 per cent in the world are already preparing our society for a sustainable growth future,” she stated.
Noting that pricing are highly complex and controversial issues, the T&T opposition leader said it must be foremost in the minds of legislators and negotiators that one does not often have an opportunity to return to a bargaining table when the ink dries on the contracts.
“The heart of these negotiations must always be that the people of Guyana are getting the best deal for their Patrimony- the Oil and Gas from their lands…. I am aware that consideration is being given to the establishment of a Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) similar to what we in Trinidad and Tobago known as the Heritage and Stabilisation Fund (HSF),” she said
Explaining that there are many economic tools which can be used to channel resources into such a fund, Persad-Bissessar said these funds act as buffers given the volatile pricing and political issues involved in the hydrocarbon industry.
“Other supplemental tools such as Petroleum Production Taxes, Supplemental Petroleum Taxes, a Petroleum Impost and clauses for increased scales of taxation for supernormal finds may be worthy of consideration as adjunct strategies to enable equity in profit sharing across the board and sustainability during low price periods,” she said.
She however recommends that the SWF not be used to supplement recurring expenditure as has been happening recently in T&T.
“Your SWF is an insurance policy, it is not nor should it be seen as a “cash cow” to be raided. This would defeat the entire purpose of such a fund and indeed raiding the fund to supplement the annual Treasury expenditure has the potential to significantly destabilize the national economy,” she said.
Acknowledging that Guyana now stands at the crossroads of a pivotal moment in its own history; the opportunities coming its way will certainly result in increased employment and investment, the lawyer who is a Senior Counsel said the real investment that should be made is focusing on the development of the country’s most important resource – your human resource – the people of Guyana.
“Education and training of people, as well as the improvement of all areas of health, education, and infrastructure are critical. In the area of health, new hospitals and health centers need to be built and staffed by the brightest minds available, as well as more doctors trained and hired throughout the country and of special importance to visit and attend to remote areas where the indigenous peoples live are important,” she explained.
Further, the former Minister of Education said significant investments in education at all levels should be made.
“Investments into Education by providing the resources, staffing and housing of educational establishments should be made from pre-school all the way to PhD for Guyanese citizens.
In
addition, access to electricity, clean water availability and preservation of
the natural environment including climate change mitigation is a fundamental
pillar to national development,” she noted.
The Trinidadian lawyer and politician also urged Guyana to consider not just
the short term and medium-term plans but long-range planning which will
maximise the Capital Expenditure to be invested in pipelines, rigs and possibly
refineries, whilst using the profits from petroleum to diversify the economy
towards the other non-petroleum-sectors – the Services Sector, Manufacturing,
Tourism, Agriculture and any other sectors.
“And this is where and how you, the GMSA have a most important role to play in manufacturing and services for the energy sector and the non-energy sector. Use the petro dollars to grow your own productive capacity to become independent producers and not dependent on imports of all the things to sustain life and your economy,” the lawyer said.
She continued: “To ensure a diversified economy, I recommend you invest in infrastructure to open up the vast Guyanese interior and develop your mining and agriculture sectors. There is an infrastructure deficit in Guyana. In terms of infrastructure, consideration should be given to the growing needs of your nation, as your energy sector gets going.”
In
this regard, she said that a system of highways to open up the country and
probably a rail network to bring raw materials like silica, bauxite and
manganese ore out of the jungle and to the ports will be needed.
Recommending that Guyanese leaders think seven generations ahead, she said the
petroleum boom in Guyana should be seen as a unique opportunity to build strong
infrastructure at the onset of Renewable Energy Technologies and also to ensure
that Climate Change Mitigation measures are considered as the industry matures.
“Resource rich areas in Countries in the Middle East are already aggressively pursuing Solar and wind powered electricity as adjunct technologies to power generation, this ensures that the higher value crude and derivatives are sold to earn valuable foreign exchange,” Persad-Bissessar said.
She continued: “I am hoping that Guyana will become the flagship country in the region for renewable energy….So, we can also share in your success to implement diversification strategies from early on. Protecting Your Patrimony, I have long held the view that the assets of the State belong in equal measure to each and every citizen, and in this regard, I have always advocated that Procurement of assets of the State as well as Disposal of Assets must conform to the most stringent standards of compliancy and in the most transparent manner possible.”
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