Dear Editor,
The Government undoubtedly has a big role to play in the management of the emerging petroleum sector. But it cannot do it all by itself. It has to develop strategic partnerships with the private sector and other non-state agencies including the University of Guyana. The concept of public/private partnerships (PPP) is becoming a preferred mechanism to manage big industries.
At the level of policy oversight, this cannot be left under the purview of the Natural Resources Ministry and the newly created Department of Energy. Both have limitations in terms of institutional capacity and experience to effectively manage an industry as gigantic as oil and gas. Experience throughout the oil producing world has shown that there is a convergence between oil interests and that of the political directorate which if not properly managed could have a debilitating effect on the economy as in the case of neighbouring Venezuela.
It is in the above context that we need to tread carefully as we seek to navigate uncharted petroleum waters. In this regard, we have to learn from the experiences of other oil producing nations in order to avoid possible pitfalls and at the same time to draw on industry best practices. We do not have to operate on the basis of ‘trial and error’.
This is why it is so important that we avoid the temptation to ‘politicize’ the management of the oil sector for narrow partisan gains. This will be a recipe for disaster. Oil is not too big to fail. We only have to look at what has now become of the sugar industry which at one point in our history was the backbone of our economy.
I believe that the way forward is to set up a Petroleum Commission drawn from the government, the political opposition, representatives from the private sector and the academic community. The Chairman of the Commission should be non-political and should be elected by consensus from among the Commissioners. One likely consequence of such a Commission is that it could bring a fair measure of confidence in policy making among key stakeholders of which the Guyanese people are primary.
Yours faithfully,
Hydar Ally
