-Ramotar hints at Amaila hydro revival
Guyana is in line for a new payment of US$35M under its forest protection agreement with Norway, after a marginal increase in deforestation and forest degradation in 2012.
Although the figure represents an expected drop in earnings, President Donald Ramotar in an address to the nation characterised the announcement as “a strong rebuttal” to those who he said have tried to “kill” government’s Low Carbon Develop-ment Strategy (LCDS) and the Guyana-Norway partnership, while hinting at progress on resuscitating the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project. Government planned to use some US$80M from payments received from Norway as equity for the project, which was shelved after the developer pulled out last year.
“Guyana is on the threshold of achieving what few countries anywhere in the world have managed to achieve,” he declared, while adding that the country has spent five years building the foundations of a genuinely low carbon economy. “We are maintaining 99.5% of our forest, and showing the world that it is possible to do this while simultaneously generating jobs and economic growth from sustainable forestry and mining practices. New low carbon economic sectors are growing fast; small businesses are creating low carbon jobs; Amerindians are achieving secure tenure over their land; and we are starting to invest in critical flood protection infrastructure,” he added.
A verification confirmed that Guyana’s deforestation rate for 2012 (the Year 3 reporting period) was 0.079%, representing a jump from 0.054% in 2011 (the Year 2 reporting period). It was expected that the increase cost the country somewhere in the area of US$20 million.
However, with the latest payment, Guyana’s total earning under the partnership with Norway now stands at US$150M. Despite the delay in the announcement of the payment for 2012, Ramotar yesterday was already looking ahead to the payment for 2013, which saw a reported decrease in the rate of deforestation. He estimated that the next payment would bring the country’s earnings close to US$200M, meaning that it is unlikely to tap the additional US$50M catered for under the deal.
The five-year deal with Norway was signed on November 9, 2009 but has seen numerous delays in disbursements, project implementation and differences over the intermediation of the funds. The deal is now expected to end next year though there may be attempts to extend it. While Guyana may now have access to US$150M, only a small portion has actually been spent as projects have not been implemented as quickly as hoped. Earlier this year, Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh said a total of US$8.3M had been spent.
The Norwegian government in its official announcement yesterday noted that in 2012, Guyana kept deforestation and forest degradation at “very low, though increased,” levels.
“Today’s announcement of a US$35 million payment to Guyana is based on Guyana’s deforestation rate in 2012 as well as the country’s progress on indicators that will enable agreed goals for forest governance,” it explained.
Tine Sundtoft, Minister of Climate and the Environment in Norway, was quoted as saying that she was happy that Norway can contribute to Guyana’s green development through the forest partnership. “Guyana’s deforestation is one of the lowest in the world. The goal of the partnership with Guyana is to keep it that way,” she said.
In his address to the nation last evening, which was broadcast on the state-owned NCN, Ramotar signalled that there has been “progress” in resuscitating the Amaila project, which government says will benefit all Guyanese by providing them with affordable, reliable, clean energy. He said that “Over the coming weeks and months, we will share with you the details of our new way forward…the Amaila Falls Hydro Project can still be operational by 2019”, apparently discounting any possibility that a planned no-confidence motion can remove his government.
Ramotar blamed “self-serving political games” for attempts to collapse the project and called it “a disgraceful episode in our nation’s development,” when he some commentators and politicians refused to let evidence be their guide.
“But I said then that I would not give up in the face of such baseless attacks and that my government would remain steadfast in pursuing this transformative project,” he noted. “Thankfully, our partners in the Inter-American Development Bank and the Government of Norway also remained steadfast in their resolve, and I am pleased to let you know that we are once more making progress,” he said.
Ramotar also directed his address at the media, saying much of the recent coverage of the LCDS and the Guyana-Norway partnership has been deeply irresponsible. “So I call for the media to play their part in helping the people of Guyana to gain access to facts and evidence,” he added.
Ramotar also said his address was “a national call to action” and he appealed for both the Amaila Falls Hydro Project and the LCDS to be areas of consensus. “Let our politicians know that democratic politics should be about a competition of ideas to make our country better. It should not be a battle between those who seek to build and those who seek to destroy,” he said. “I call on the people of Guyana to insist on no more partisan attacks to destroy something that is so critical to our country’s development, but instead, to insist on a constant debate on how we can work together on these matters of crucial national importance,” he added.
The president also reiterated that he would work with anyone in the society who sincerely wants to take to plot a better path for all our people. “Let’s leave those who seek to destroy our development behind us, let’s keep working to build a new economy, and let’s prove to the international community that countries from the developing world can lead the way to global solutions,” he said.
