President David Granger on Monday evening at the residence of the Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, encouraged a group of young Guyanese students studying abroad to return home on completion of their studies.
“We are going to move mountains to enable young Guyanese to come back and have a stake in their native land,” he told the students.
Speaking at the first international student networking event, which was organised by the Minister of State and Simona Broomes, daughter of the Minister within the Ministry of Social Protection, Simona Broomes, the President said that the ‘good life’ here beckons people who are entrepreneurial, adventurous and committed to this country.
“We need people who are going to build roads, build aerodromes, and develop this country. I wouldn’t have been here had I not believed in this country.
When we look at the prospects of Guyana, I believe that there is a future for every Guyanese… Guyana is the new frontier in the Caribbean. It is a land of hope and promise and we want to guarantee that promise to the next generation,” he said.
He emphasised the beauty of the country and said that as Guyana approaches its Jubilee Independence Anniversary, it is important that all Guyanese, at home and abroad come together “to repair a nation”, which he said was broken at birth.
“We had tremendous difficulties. Next May is a very important event because it is a time for national unity, for coming together, for the realisation that we are one and we either swim together or sink together… Next year we must, more or less, celebrate a second independence. You being here is an important step we are taking towards that goal. I have always said that Guyana is divided into two; one half in South America and the other in North America and part of my mission is to reunite the two halves and to let those in the diaspora know that they are Guyanese… This country beckons for them, the country needs them. We need human power to exploit those resources. We need people like you…,” the President said.
He assured the students that his administration will put systems in place to make certain that they can return to serve their country, once their studies would have been completed.
Harmon said the event was aimed at giving students, who live and study abroad, the opportunity to interact with the President and Ministers of Government, so that they can be informed of the plans the administration has for them.
Some of the students, in invited comments, praised the initiative, the release said.
“I think it is important that we students, who are studying overseas, have the opportunity to interact with each other because we are so spread out, so it is really good that we have this opportunity not just to interact with each other, but the Government officials so that we (can) share our ideas and hear what is happening,” Ryan Duff, a student at the Howard University, said.
Martin Massiah, an International Business graduate, said that he was happy to be home for the holidays and will be making his contribution to Guyana in the development of several business ideas.
“Guyana is a land of many resources. I will be coming back to Guyana and I will be developing a number of businesses, developing proposals to really enhance the infrastructure in Guyana especially in the area of technology because it would allow us to raise the bar for Guyana,” he stated
