The Guyana Chess Federation (GCF) held its biennial general meeting on November 26, 2023 via Zoom, to report on its activities for the period 2021-2023 and to hold elections for office bearers for the next two years.
Anand Raghunauth, the lone candidate for the presidential election, was declared the President by the Returning Officer, Tanya Warren-Clement. Raghunauth presented his team of 11 members of the Board and Executive Management of the GCF.
Returning as Vice President is Irshad Mohamad; Company Secretary Marcia Lee, and as Directors Loris Nathoo, Davion Mars, Shiv Nandalall and Yolander Sammy. Five new committee members were added – Sabine McIntosh, Jaishree Lam, Sheriffa Ali, Gilbert Williams and John Lee.
These individuals have all served on sub-committees in the previous leadership except for Williams, a long-time chess player and Federation member.
Members of the various committees will be appointed during the coming weeks, to complete the organisational structure of the Federation. Committee members will be nominated according to their willingness and dedication to volunteering their time and effort towards the GCF.
In his report, GCF President Raghunauth informed the meeting that the Federation has achieved significant milestones over the past two years, including strengthening relationships with key international bodies and expanding chess programmes in schools.
The GCF President mentioned the partnership with the Ministry of Education’s Allied Arts Department to introduce chess into the school curriculum and train teachers to teach the game. As a result, over 500 children are now learning chess in Georgetown, with several schools establishing active chess clubs.
The report also described the significant progress in promoting women’s chess, with tournaments for girls becoming a norm with a local outreach event attracting international attention.
The Board and Executive Management of the GCF will continue working assiduously towards the development of the organization, with an emphasis on training and expanding the Chess in Schools Programme within the country. The GCF is committed to fostering a sustainable culture of chess in Guyana and ensuring that the sport continues to grow and thrive in the years to come.
