Govt, World Bank collaborating to implement climate resilience projects shelved by APNU-AFC

Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh announced on Monday that the Guyana Government, in collaboration with the World Bank, is moving swiftly to implement multiple climate change projects that the previous APNU+AFC Government shelved.
According to the Minister, the move follows the Bank’s renewed commitment to strengthen Guyana’s resilience and adaptive capacity to prevent and manage the effects of climate change.

Additionally, the opportunity comes at a time when Guyana is receiving worldwide recognition for the strategic management of its 65,000 square miles of forested land, and the provision of climate services to international investor.
“Guyana articulated the very visionary, almost revolutionary concept that our standing forests were providing a valuable service to the rest of the world in the fight against climate change. And that that valuable service should be remunerated. And here again, for the second time around, we were in the generation LCDS, already a pioneering country at the cutting edge of the forest resources to earn resources. Guyana has now become the first country in the world to have achieved jurisdiction-scale certification of our forests under the art trees mechanism”.
Dr. Singh disclosed that most of the projects being financed now could have been implemented five years ago, but were allegedly scrapped by the then Coalition Government. This includes the Amerindian Land Titling programme.
Nevertheless, he lauded the Bank for now fast-tracking the approval of similar transformative interventions, noting that this has resulted in some projects receiving funding quicker than usual.
“I think it has taken some time for the World Bank to adjust to this new modality, but the bottom line is we really appreciate the work that you did and your team to get us to where we are today, and we look forward to speedy implementation of projects,” Dr. Singh said.

The finance minister reassured that all resources injected into climate management is aimed at improving Guyanese peoples’ quality of life.
“Those finances are intended to be utilised on investments in advancing the low-carbon transition and in accelerating low-carbon investments, including both climate mitigation and adaptation investments, but in particular, investments such as improved flood risk management, drainage and irrigation, the transition of our energy infrastructure to cleaner and more renewable sources, the development of climate-friendly village economies in our hinterland to improve advanced hinterland development, etc,” Singh added.
Meanwhile, the World Bank Group Resident Representative for Guyana and Suriname, Diletta Doretti shared similar sentiments, noting that the Bank’s involvement in fast-tracking projects aligns with the country’s broader vision for climate-resilient growth.
According to the bank, Guyana is among the countries most vulnerable to climate change. Studies have shown that rising sea levels, among the highest in the world, expose 100 percent of the country’s coastal agriculture and 66.4 percent of its coastal urban areas to flooding and erosion, with potential GDP losses that could exceed 46.4 percent.
“Building climate resilience and flood resilience along the coastal areas is an area where the World Bank and the Government have been collaborating for a long time and has built neutral expertise… so this is continuing the engagement we have had which is very successful and this is an area which the government is investing heavily,” the World Bank Group Resident Representative for Guyana and Suriname said.