Pres Ali discusses integrating green technologies, urban planning with Singaporean PM

Guyana and Singapore have committed to deepening cooperation, with President Dr Irfaan Ali discussing sustainable urban development models with Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.
The Guyanese Head of State is currently in Apia, Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) being held from October 25-26. President Ali is joined by Foreign Affairs Minister Hugh Todd, who is participating in a series of ministerial events in the Polynesian island nation.
In a release issued by the President’s press team, it was stated that President Ali during the high-level discussions with Prime Minister Wong, underscored the rapidly-growing partnership between Guyana and Singapore.
The two leaders focused on four key areas that highlight the shared priorities and leadership of both nations in economic development and global sustainability – Carbon Markets, Low Carbon Development, Biodiversity and Private Sector Development.
President Ali and Prime Minister Wong further explored opportunities for cooperation on low-carbon development, a major theme of Guyana’s engagement at the 2024 CHOGM. “Sustainable urban development was a particular focus, with both leaders exchanging insights on integrating green technologies and urban planning to create environmentally-friendly, resilient cities,” it was shared in the Guyanese Leader’s social media post.
According to the Head of State, both Guyana and Singapore are recognised as world leaders in carbon markets, and the leaders reaffirmed their commitment to further collaboration in this field. They also discussed ways to advance international frameworks for carbon trading and highlighted the potential for greater cooperation between the two countries as models for balancing economic development with environmental stewardship.
Only back in July, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo had disclosed that the Government was looking to tap into the compliance market based in Singapore to sell Guyana’s certified carbon credits to international airlines.
“We’ve been fighting to get our carbon sold into a compliance market… There’s one in the world that uses forest carbon, they allow trading. It’s a Singapore-based market and it is for airlines. Therefore, we’ve started the discussions to see whether we can sell our certified carbon to some of the airlines,” Jagdeo had stated.
Back in February of this year, the Architecture for REDD+ Transactions (ART) issued Guyana with 7.14 million carbon credits dating back to 2021, marking the first time carbon credits have been issued that can be used by airlines to meet their compliance requirements in the first phase of the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA).
CORSIA, which began on January 1, 2024, is the global emissions reduction programme of the International Civil Aviation Organisation(ICAO) for airlines to use for the 2024-2026 voluntary phase.

Global Biodiversity Alliance
During the high-level talks in Samoa, President Ali updated the Singaporean Prime Minister on Guyana’s ambitious plans to lead the establishment of a Global Biodiversity Alliance – an initiative that aims to unite countries and organisations in a shared commitment to preserve biodiversity, recognising its critical role in maintaining ecological balance and addressing climate change.
Guyana and Singapore are already collaborating in the oil and gas sector, with Guyana’s Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessels being manufactured in the Southeastern Asian country and involving many Singaporean companies in the supply chain.
During their engagement, the two leaders discussed ways to expand this collaboration into other sectors. They also explored how Singapore might use Guyana as a base for broader regional expansion, including into CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) nations.
It was further noted that this high-level meeting underscores the strong ties between Guyana and Singapore, with both countries positioned as global leaders in economic development and environmental sustainability.
President Ali and Prime Minister Wong expressed their enthusiasm for building on these discussions to further strengthen bilateral relations and promote a shared vision for sustainable growth and development.
Guyana and Singapore established bilateral relations on September 19, 2002, and have collaborated at the multilateral level through the Commonwealth and Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).
Only in June 2023, Ambassador of the Republic of Singapore to Caricom, Karen Tan, was in Georgetown and met with several Government officials including President Ali and Minister Todd.
During a meeting, Minister Todd and Ambassador Tan discussed several areas of mutual interest towards advancing the cooperation agenda between Guyana and Singapore at the bilateral, regional and multilateral levels.
Ambassador Tan’s visit had served to advance the collaborative agenda between Guyana and Singapore through continued engagement between the two Foreign Ministries. In 2018, Guyana and Singapore signed an Air Services Agreement. (G8)