Guyana reaffirms efforts to address climate change at PACC 2030 Clean Energy Summit

As Guyana stays committed to a path of sustainable development, private sector representative Dr Rosh Khan on Friday participated in the Partnership to Address the Climate Crisis 2030 (PACC 2030) Climate Resilience Clean Energy Summit.
This one-day PACC 2030 Summit, held on the sidelines of US Vice-President Kamala Harris’ visit to The Bahamas, brought together companies from the United States (US) and the Caribbean, local leaders, technical assistance experts, policy experts, academics, and Government partners.
They sought to discuss the best practices for advancing climate-resilient clean energy in the Caribbean, identify funding/technical assistance gaps that could be bridged through greater partnership, and explore opportunities to further unleash the clean energy transition in the Caribbean while building greater climate resilience.
Connecting with key US and Caribbean stakeholders and policymakers, Dr Khan restated Guyana’s active role in addressing climate change and outlined key points of the Low Carbon Development Strategy 2030 to combat climate change as the country leads one of the world’s most ambitious energy transitions while growing its economy.
“Guyana stands at a pivotal junction, balancing our natural wealth with the responsibility to preserve and protect it. We are committed to the path of sustainable growth, and the PACC 2030 Summit has provided an invaluable platform to share our efforts and learn from global counterparts,” Khan said.
“HE Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali has led the charge, with Guyana being the first country to issue forest carbon credits certified by ART. The agreement will generate a minimum of US$750 million for Guyana over the coming decade and represents a major milestone on the journey towards a vision first set out in 2007. On its own, the agreement will see approximately $157 billion invested in low carbon development across the country, with $31.5 billion of this allocated to village-led development plans,” he added.
Aiming to reduce and ultimately prevent greenhouse gas emissions, carbon credits are permits that allow the owner to emit a certain amount of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gas.
Countries and companies that exceed their permitted limits can purchase carbon credits from countries like Guyana that have low carbon emissions.
Last year, US Vice-President Harris announced the launch of PACC 2030 as a way to elevate US cooperation with Caribbean countries to strengthen energy security and promote climate adaptation and resilience.
On Thursday, the Vice-President announced a series of additions and new initiatives to enhance PACC 2030, including access to development financing.
For Guyana, this refers to the Memorandum of Understanding signed last July between the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) and the Government of Guyana to explore options for utilising EXIM financing, which includes direct loans, loan guarantees, and insurance products totalling up to $2 billion for energy, water treatment, sanitation, among other sectors.