–with help from King Charles Foundation
President Irfaan Ali yesterday said that encompassed in his government’s sustainable urban development plan is the restoring of this country’s capital city to its one-time “garden” image and it has secured the help of the King Charles Foundation.
“For those of us who are old enough, we recall the images of the then President and King Charles walking through gardens and discussing and talking about LCDS… we look forward for the continuing support and work now with the King’s Foundation, especially in the area of sustainable urban development,” Ali said.
Ali was at the time addressing a high-level discussion on the theme, “Restoring Ambition for International Climate and Deve-lopment: Learning from Guyana’s Low Carbon Develop-ment Strategy and Its Global Model for Forest Finance”, held yesterday at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre in Liliendaal.
“Our work continues to expand and as part of the LCDS 2030 vision, that is the renewal of the city, the renewal of new areas and development of new growth poles and road areas, the beautification of our city and country, the expansion of urban planning, the revival of urban planning, the drainage and irrigation aspect of the city, addressing flooding, all of that is part of the LCDS 2030 vision,” he said.
“And today we are very pleased that we have established a strong partnership with the King’s Foundation in the renewal of Georgetown, the city of Georgetown, and we are working on various projects to enhance the city of Georgetown and give it back that title of the Garden City of the world,” he added.
Ali said that his government, since taking office in 2020, has been building the foundations for the next wave of LCDS 2030 priorities in the areas of sustainable urban development, biodiversity conservation, and water management.
“On sustainable urban development, all our cities and towns, but particularly Georgetown and its surrounding areas, are undergoing rapid transformation, at a speed unmatched by most cities in the world. Since my government took office, we have focused on addressing the massive infrastructure deficit we faced. We are constructing four-lane highways. The new Demerara Harbour Bridge, beautification projects – investment in drainage, roads, community infrastructure – these are all adding to the expansion of wealth and the creation of a sustainable future for all of us,” he said.
Ali’s government has been criticized for heavy investment in infrastructure without commensurate attention to the cost of living burden facing large segments of the population.
‘Next Dubai or Miami’
And with plans to reach 50,000 house lot allocations next year, he said that this sets the provision for the next phase of urban development which includes the beautification and sustainability of Guyana’s capital city.
Key initiatives that will be rolled out were listed as he was upbeat that with the determination and will of the people of Guyana and local government, the plans can be a reality.
Central government and City Hall have been at loggerheads over what the PPP/C claims is mismanagement and the lack of transparency of city hall revenues. City Hall has had to over the years, consistently turn to central government for bailouts.
“Some say Georgetown could be the next Dubai or Miami. But while we can certainly learn from these cities, we should be proud to craft our own future. Guyana has always been centred around village life, and we must reconcile this heritage with the modernisation we want to see. Let’s imagine a Georgetown that blends its rich history with cutting-edge infrastructure and technology, a city that is both cosmopolitan and reflective of our values,” he said.
“To make this a reality, several key initiatives will soon start. The cross-cutting nature of this work means that it will require action from local government as well as the central government, but its cross-cutting nature means that it is appropriate that central government funds the work and leads its implementation.”
Over the next few months, he said that an eight-pronged technical approach will begin and would not be limited to one city or town in the country.
“These will include a vision and urban development framework for Greater Georgetown, a smart code for building design, the continuation of the master plan of Silica City, two pilot neighbourhood plans, a greenways strategy, and modernised urban maps,” the President said.
“At the same time, we are committed to preserving Georgetown’s historic core. Once known as the Garden City of the Caribbean, Georgetown is home to beautiful colonial architecture and green spaces. A Heritage Conservation Plan, led by the National Trust of Guyana, will set out plans for ensuring that history and modernity coexist in harmony. It will also guide us on our plans to create spaces, including Physical Exhibition Space and a Virtual Museum Platform to celebrate our history and attract tourism. Part of our plan is also the development of the first cultural market in this region,” he added.
Yesterday’s event which included an address by, and discussion with Norway’s former Minister of Climate, Erik Solheim, and Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo was, according to Ali, one “to celebrate really, to acknowledge, to celebrate and to define who we are, what we stood for, what we continue to stand for, and what is it we project as a country and as a people.”
He pointed to Jagdeo’s flagship environmental initiative in Guyana’s LCDS, and how it began 15 years ago to ensuring this country benefitted by establishing incentives which value the world’s ecosystem services, and promoting those as an essential component of a new model of global development with sustainability at its core.
“It was an idea of then President, now Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo, that our forest was a natural and national asset that was playing a key role globally, but that role the forest was playing here and the forest in other parts of the world was not acknowledged. There was little or no acknowledgement of the role of the forest in the climate equation. It is the worth, by Guyana, with support from friends like Eric and Norway, King Charles, that led to attention coming to the forest and the role the forest plays in the climate equation. So, we must understand that Guyana was a major part of ensuring the position and role of forest is understood and also is acknowledged, and I think we must applaud that,” he said.
And fifteen years later, the President said that Guyana’s commitment to global policy making remains constant. “Not only we believe that we can help in shaping ideas and policies to find global solutions for problems like climate, food and energy, but we believe that we can craft and develop these ideas into economic models that can work and work in the favor of people,” Ali stressed.
For his part, the Norwegian former Minister of International Development, and Environment, who signed the LCDS Norway agreement 15 years ago, said that with monies from Guyana’s newfound oil resources, it holds the potential to shape the country into a model for the world, not just for climate initiatives.
On Georgetown’s urban transformation, Solheim put forward using eco-friendly solar panels in the creation of a bicycle lane as is currently done in South Korea. “I’m no expert in Georgetown but this very, very long character of Georgetown should make it very well fit for quite a few bike lanes which will basically carry everyone,” he said.
