Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, and the Canadian team, including Canadian Ambassador to Guyana, David Devine
Guyana is on the list of six countries in the Caribbean targeted by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) International for a project to bolster local economic development.
The initiative will be facilitated in partnership with stakeholders at the local government level, the aim of which is to support expansion of entrepreneurship endeavours by small producers and manufacturers.
The concept was introduced to President Donald Ramotar by FCM International Director Sebastien Hamel and Project Director Naresh Singh in the company of Canadian High Commissioner David Devine and Deputy Secretary General of the Commonwealth Local Government Forum, Lucy Slack.
The new project will be targeting communities across the country including those in the hinterland and the coastland, with intensive investment on the ground for the first three years. The successful project model will be shared with the Caribbean Community (Caricom) at the culmination.
Hamel told the Government Information Agency (GINA) in an invited comment that FCM International holds has 100 years’ experience in the field of collaboration with municipalities in various countries.
After the interaction, President Ramotar endorsed the idea, much to the satisfaction of the visiting team.
“Both the head of the Presidential Secretariat and the president have deep interest in this project for us to go forward,” Hamel said.
High Commissioner Devine views the project as another step towards closer sustainable relationship between the governments of Guyana and Canada through partnerships in various sectors.
During the course of the day, the team also met and engaged other senior government officials, including Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh and Minister in the Local Government Ministry Norman Whittaker on the project.
Minister Whittaker said the new project, if initialised, will serve to provide the kind of guidance that is needed in the full utilisation of the country’s resources.
Guyana has tremendous resources but what is needed is some building of capacity, and some guidance on how to use the resources to help create jobs and provide more earnings for people, he said.
This is the initial stage of the project that seeks to introduce it to the various political bodies of Caricom countries to get a sense of the countries’ interest in the project.
The next stage will see a technical mission implemented that will see the conduct of baseline studies in the countries to assess their suitability for the project. This study is set to commence in March and will conclude by mid April.
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