COP26 Summit: VP’s Suriname visit to craft common approach on climate change – President

…manufacturing, energy, industries to be discussed

President Dr Irfaan Ali has said that preparations are ongoing ahead of Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo’s visit to Suriname, which will precede the COP26 summit where the two nations are aiming to have a common strategy on environmental issues.

During a recent interview with the media on the side lines of an event, President Ali was asked about preparations for the Guyana, Suriname and Brazil summit. Leaders from the countries will be meeting in Suriname to discuss a joint strategy for the UN Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26. He noted, however, that much must be done before the summit.

“There are a lot of things that have to be done bilaterally before the summit. I know that engagements are ongoing. Earlier this year, we had some engagements with Brazil. But the Vice President, part of what we agreed was that he would lead a delegation to Suriname to look at that joint gas strategy and discuss the commonalities of our strategy in addressing COP26 and the environment and climate change issues.”
“Before that meeting, that summit, we have to have a great understanding of the plan. The joint development plan on the frontier. Because that is what is going to form the basis for that discussion. It is a discussion that I know is creating a lot of excitement. And I’m very convinced that Brazil want to play a key part in this discussion and development,” the President explained.
President Ali also explained the various issues that will be on the agenda, including but not limited to the gas-to-shore project. He noted that when the teams meet, they will be taking a holistic look at economic development in the Guiana Shield.
“So it has to do with not only the gas project, it has to do with energy for the Guiana Shield corridor. It also has to do with the bauxite sector, the development of logistics and the offshoot of the gas sector and cheaper energy, which is industrial development and manufacturing. That is the downstream and upstream industries,” he said.

Expert mission
Last month, Surinamese President Chandrikapersad Santokhi visited Guyana, during which his team held discussions with Guyanese. One of the commitments was that Vice President Jagdeo would lead an expert mission to Suriname for bilateral discussions.
It is expected that the two countries will work together to develop a common strategy to deal with issues of climate change and the environment. This visit is expected to be conducted before the COP26 Summit which is billed for November 1 to November 12 in Glasgow, United Kingdom.
President Dr Ali had told reporters during a joint press conference with his Surinamese counterpart that “both Guyana and Suriname recognise that we have a valuable asset in Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo in this field of environment.”
As such, the Head of State announced that Jagdeo will soon “lead a delegation to Suriname before COP26 to look at the coordination of our strategies, and also to work with our counterparts in Suriname in coming up with a common strategy in dealing with climate change and the environment.”
According to a joint communique subsequently issued by the two Presidents, a working group will be established within two weeks which will seek to come up with concrete proposals for a joint gas strategy. This will include the gas-to-shore infrastructure and a gas plant.
The COP26 summit, which will be held in Glasgow, Scotland, will bring parties together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. (G3)