Nobel laureate visits Kaieteur Falls

Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Chairman of the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Dr Rajendra Pachauri, who is currently on a one-day visit to Guyana, said he was heartened by President Bharrat Jagdeo’s commitment to the fight against climate change.

Dr Pachauri, accompanied by Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh and a high-level team of representatives from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), visited the Kaieteur National Park and the Baganara Island Resort during a guided tour to view some of Guyana’s spectacular sights, particularly the majestic Kaieteur Falls.

Members of the team included IDB Executive Vice President Julie Katzman, and other IDB representatives of the bank; Chairman of the Guyana Power and Light (GPL), Winston Brassington; and Head of the Office of Climate Change (OCC), Shyam Nokta.

According to a Government Information Agency (GINA) release, Dr Pachauri described his visit to Guyana as an ‘eye opener’ and a wonderful experience.

Minister Singh acknowledged the work of the IPCC Chairman, which he said served as a tremendous source of inspiration for Guyana and has formed the basis of much of the country’s advocacy on climate change issues.

He added that Dr Pachauri’s global contribution in drawing attention to the climate change challenges of vulnerable countries is deeply appreciated by Guyana, since climate change is central among the country’s policies. Dr Singh also alluded to the outstanding contribution of the IDB to Guyana’s development over the past years.

He said that the IDB has been an outstanding development partner, as is evident in the range of projects that the bank has supported in every aspect of the country’s transformation, and also in institutional reforms. The finance minister also expressed appreciation for the support given by Canada to the Caribbean in championing the cause of the Caribbean and other small states.

Executive Vice President of the (IDB) Julie Katzman stated that the IDB’s role in every country, particularly those that are small and vulnerable, is to foster transformation. In this regard, Katzman said, the IDB looks forward to its role in the execution of Guyana’s Amaila Falls hydropower project and other projects, and to continue being a participant in the realisation of Guyana’s transformation.

Dr Pachauri has repeatedly emphasized concerns regarding the implications for the world’s poorest nations, based on studies which have raised the threat of dramatic population migration, conflict, and war over water and other resources, as well as a realignment of power among nations.

Dr Pachauri won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 along with former Vice President of the United States of America, Al Gore, for his efforts to share greater knowledge about man-made climate change and to lay the foundation for the measures that are needed to counteract such changes.