Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh yesterday held discussions with the United Kingdom Small Island Developing States’ (SIDS) Envoy, Rebecca Fabrizi and raised the need for concessional financing for countries like Guyana with vulnerabilities.
A statement from the Ministry of Finance said that the meeting was facilitated by British High Commissioner to Guyana, Jane Miller.
The Minister said that SIDS such as Guyana should be provided with access to concessional financing given their vulnerabilities.
The statement added that Singh continued to advocate for a universally-accepted multi-dimensional index on which access to concessional financing is allowed. He called on the UK to continue its advocacy for the adoption of such an index.
Singh said that a result of the country’s expanded oil production and being one of the fastest growing economies in the world, Government is striving to keep a balance between investing in some major areas such as energy and infrastructure which will benefit Guyanese in the long term, while simultaneously investing in the social sector to improve the lives of citizens daily.
He said that notwithstanding the size of the 2023 Budget, it is still modest with a few large projects included, such as the New Demerara River Bridge.
He also referenced some of the other provisions, including those to assist the agriculture sector as he linked the need for an improved electricity supply in the country to Guyana working towards moving from being a primary producer of commodities to being a secondary producer as well as a provider of cheaper electricity.
Singh, the Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, also posited that Government’s focus on infrastructure is to address the longstanding gaps over the years.
“It is with these in mind, as well as more large projects in the pipeline, that the Minister alluded to concessional financing by Guyana’s development partners, some of which continue to provide this aid and partner with Government to accelerate programmes and projects”, the statement said.
Guyana recently collaborated with the UK Caribbean Infrastructure Fund with the latter providing US$66 million toward the US$190 million Linden to Mabura road project.
Further, through the UK Export Finance, the Government of Guyana is constructing a modern Paediatric and Maternal Hospital. The building and equipping of the state-of-the-art hospital costs 149 million pounds sterling.
The statement added that both officials reaffirmed Guyana’s and the UK’s commitment to continued collaboration and improved relations in a number of areas.
The meeting was held at the Ministry of Finance.
