Guyana leads the way in balancing economic growth, environmental protection – Minister

…says Guyanese should be proud

Natural Resources Minister Vickram Bharrat on Monday highlighted Guyana’s leadership in balancing economic development with environmental protection, positioning the country ahead of other developing nations. He reminded Guyanese to take pride in the nation’s global standing, regardless of political differences.
Bharrat made these comments during day two of the ongoing budget debates at the National Assembly. During the debates, Bharrat spoke of the decrepit state the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government found the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) when they entered office in 2020.

He pointed out that not only were they able to turn around the fortunes of the then cash strapped GFC, but they’ve also been able to build a framework around the forestry sector that has led to Guyana gaining international recognition for its forest management model. This has led to the Government securing the sale of carbon credits, while also being paid for legacy credits as well.
“Today, we have transformed the forestry sector. That Guyana is recognised as having one of the best forest management systems in the world, with one of the lowest deforestation rates in the world. And the honourable member spoke glowingly about the low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS). Well, he needs to read that document properly and you’ll realise that we’re well ahead of many countries.”
“What is important to note, is Guyana has become a model country in this world, in terms of economic development versus environmental sustainability. Guyana is recognised for that worldwide. And all Guyanese, regardless of where we sit, we must be proud of that achievement. Regardless of political affiliation, it is about patriotism,” Bharrat said.
The Government has been beefing up its Monitoring Verification and Reporting System (MRVS) for the forestry sector, which has played an important role in Guyana being able to verify its carbon credits, so that they can be sold on the international market.
In 2022, Guyana signed a historic, multi-year US$750 million agreement with Hess Corporation for the purchase of 37.5 million carbon credits. Guyana was also the first country to conclude the Architecture for REDD+ Transactions (ART) process of certifying its forest carbon.
These serialised credits, listed on the ART public registry, are available to buyers on the global carbon market. They can be used by airlines to comply with the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) Global Emission Reduction Programme (GERP), the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), as well as for voluntary corporate climate commitments.
Guyana’s completion of the ART process paved the way for other Governments that are looking to receive carbon market finance for success in protecting and restoring forests. At the time Guyana was issued with the credits, 14 other countries and large sub-national jurisdictions are working toward their own issuances of the REDD+ Environmental Excellence Standard (TREES) credits.
In 2023, Natural Resources Minister Vickram Bharrat and European Commissioner for International Partnerships Jutta Urpilainen had signed a roadmap for the implementation of the Guyana-EU Forest Partnership with the aim of managing Guyana’s forests and promoting the forest bioeconomy. This roadmap establishes the EU and Guyana’s commitment to reaching a set number of targets by 2030.
These include: maintaining 12.5 million hectares of sustainably managed forests; expanding protected and conserved forests to 30 per cent of terrestrial and marine species; increasing restored forest to 200,000 hectares; increasing the number of forest-related decent jobs; and maintaining the rate of deforestation of natural forests below 0.01 per cent per annum.
The Forest Partnership, along with the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) initiative and the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA), is expected to support Guyana in strengthening its forest bioeconomy, attracting public and private investments, and advancing climate and biodiversity objectives, while safeguarding the rights of local communities and Indigenous peoples.