University of Guyana honours Sir Ronald Sanders for decades of regional service

Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States (US) and Permanent Representative to the Organisation of American States (OAS), Sir Ronald Sanders, received an Honorary Doctor of Laws (LLD Honoris Causa) from the University of Guyana (UG), which recognised his distinguished contributions to Caribbean diplomacy, governance and international advocacy. The honour, conferred at UG’s convocation ceremony, on November 22, celebrates Sir Ronald’s decades of leadership in regional integration, global diplomacy and the defence of small states within the international system. In his acceptance address, delivered to the Vice-Chancellor, faculty, officials, and graduating class, Sir Ronald expressed profound gratitude, describing the recognition as both humbling and deeply meaningful.
“I accept this Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, with deep humility,” he told the gathering, adding thanks to the graduands “for allowing me to share this moment—the first day of the rest of their lives.”

One Guyana: more than a slogan
Sir Ronald used the platform to reflect on Guyana’s current moment of national evolution, particularly under the banner of “One Guyana”; a concept he described as “an article of faith” rather than a slogan. He praised President Irfaan Ali’s vision for a society rooted in equal opportunity, inclusive development, and shared prosperity. The idea of “One Guyana,” he emphasised, is a national covenant—one shaped by the long history of struggle and aspiration echoing from the sugar estates, the hinterland, and villages across the country. “It is a promise that the nation’s astonishing bounty—from its fertile soil to its emerging oil and gas wealth—must not become a fortune for the few but a foundation for the many,” he said. “Nations fracture when abundance excludes; they rise when prosperity is shared.” Turning to Guyana’s border controversy with Venezuela, Sir Ronald delivered one of the most forceful defences of Guyana’s territorial integrity heard in a UG convocation address. He noted that the Essequibo region—long recognised under the 1899 Arbitral Award—remains subject to Venezuela’s revived and unfounded claims. But Guyana, he stressed, has responded with “character,” adhering consistently to the UN Charter and the rule of international law.
“Guyana’s strength lies not in the power of arms, but in the power of law—and in its fidelity to that law even when provoked,” he said, highlighting that this principled stance has earned the respect of the international community.
Against this backdrop, Sir Ronald cautioned against the belief that a change of Government in Caracas would automatically resolve the dispute. Territorial ambitions, he argued, “survive the host in which they first found life” unless decisively settled through international adjudication. He called for Guyana to continue expanding alliances within CARICOM, the Americas, and globally—alliances that “make aggression costly and principle powerful.”
Guyana, he said, must continue urging Venezuela to respect the International Court of Justice (ICJ) process and commit, as Guyana already has, to accepting its final ruling. “For peace without law is a truce; peace with law is a settlement and a closure,” he declared.

A charge to the graduating class
Returning to the heart of the convocation—the students—Sir Ronald described their graduation as taking place at “a moment of extraordinary opportunity.” With Guyana expected to grow by more than 15 per cent this year and the non-oil sector expanding almost as rapidly, he told graduands they stand at the threshold of a national transformation unseen in previous generations. “You will inherit a Guyana of unprecedented possibilities,” he said. But with opportunity comes responsibility: to guard against division, uphold justice, and ensure that the nation’s wealth becomes the people’s wealth. “The future of Guyana will not be written merely in budgets or in barrels,” he reminded them, “but in the character, courage, and clarity of purpose of its young citizens.”