60th Independence Anniversary: “Guyana’s greatest journey still ahead” – Pres Ali …says country ready for front row of global prosperity

As Guyana celebrates its 60th Independence Anniversary, President Dr Irfaan Ali has said that while this is a great achievement, it is just the beginning, with much more work to be done to propel the country as a competitive player in the global economy.
He made these remarks on Monday evening during the national flag-raising ceremony to usher in Guyana’s Independence Day.
“Sixty years is a foundation… Our journey shows our promise. It offers a pathway to a brighter future, and we are all well on our way. The work ahead belongs to every one of us,” the Head of State declared.
According to the President, this nation and its people endured a lot over the decades, both pre- and post-independence. Today, 60 years after independence, he said Guyana stands before the world in a position that our fore parents could scarcely have imagined.
“We are today the fastest-growing economy on earth. Let that settle for a moment. Fastest growing, not in this hemisphere, not in the Caribbean, but on the entire planet. And we did that together as One People, One Nation, One Destiny. We did that as One Guyana,” he asserted.
In 1966, when Guyana gained independence, the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) stood at $229 million [USD] but now exceeds $75 billion [USD] in purchasing power terms. The per capita income, once $344 [USD], is today projected to approach $38,000 [USD] per capita by 2028.
Ali emphasised that, “In a single decade, we have leapt from the margins into the front ranks of the world’s economies. That is a significant achievement, and every Guyanese has earned the right to be proud.”
But as the country looks to take its place in the front row of global stability, resilience, and prosperity, the Guyanese leader said Guyana has 60 years of shared experience, struggles, achievements, and lessons to guide it. He underscored, however, the need to protect that prosperity.

Release pain of past
To this end, President Ali stressed that it is up to every Guyanese, both here and abroad, whether they will carry the pain of history like an open wound relived each day in bitterness and division or heal it.
“A lesson of our history is clear: without harmony, there can be no true unity. Without unity, independence is never complete, and without a united people, progress can never be secure. The independence covenant was signed in hope, and it must be fulfilled in unity. The task before us is clear; we must build a nation in which all our people can live a life of fulfilment, life of honour, and life of dignity. There is no ceiling on what this nation can become. No threat will define our future. There is no boundary, none, on the ambition, the creativity, the enterprise, and the dignity of Guyanese people,” the President posited.
He went on to add that the young Guyanese, who stand on this transformative period, are not responsible for the divisions of the past but hold the responsibility for the unity of the future.
“Do not inherit old prejudices; do not repeat old arguments; do not allow the past to define the limits of your imagination. You are the generation that will finally, fully and irreversibly make Guyana whole. African and Indian, Indigenous and Portuguese, Chinese and Mixed, Christian and Hindu and Muslim, from the coastland and the hinterland, from Georgetown to Lethem, from Linden to New Amsterdam, from Region One to Region 10, we are, all of us, one Guyana. One Guyana in our diversity, one Guyana in our destiny,” the Head of State noted.

Higher covenant
According to President Ali, 60 years of independence calls Guyanese towards a higher covenant to build a nation anchored in love. He added that no one should seek to divide Guyana in pursuit of power, calling for all stakeholders not to divide but come together and work in harmony to build a Guyana that is strong, stable, and prosperous.
“Look at what we have built, look at what we have endured, look at how far we have come from that fragile, fractured, dependent nation that raised its flag at midnight on May 25th, 1966.
“The roads we are building connect not just communities but destinies. The schools we are opening do not merely teach children to read and write; they teach children to dream. The hospitals we are building do not merely heal bodies; they affirm that every Guyanese life has worth. That is what it means to govern for all. This is what One Guyana means in practice.”
““One Guyana” does not mean we are all the same; it means we are all equal, and it means every child in every region has the same rights. Every child and every region has the same right to development, to advancement, to prosperity, and to the well-being of all our people. The world has too often been told that diversity is a weakness, that difference must lead to division. The multi-ethnic societies are destined for permanent fracture. Guyana rejects that false premise. We are proving before the eyes of the world that a people drawn from many histories can still build one destiny,” the Guyanese leader asserted.