On the sidelines of the COP26 climate summit in Scotland, President Dr Irfaan Ali continued his bilateral engagements by discussing Guyana’s efforts to preserve its vast forest cover as a global asset and using it to earn revenues to develop the country and its people.
Guyana was among some 110 countries around the world to sign a pledge to end and reverse deforestation by 2030 – one of the first major deal to come out of the environment conference thus far. A whopping US$19.2 billion in both private and public funds have been injected into supporting this commitment.
During an interview with United Kingdom’s Channel 4 News at the Scottish Event Campus (SEC) in Glasgow on Tuesday, President Ali explained that deforestation is not a concern for Guyana as more than 90 per cent of Guyana’s forest cover remains intact, storing over 20 gigatons of carbon.
Instead, he pointed out that the country’s focus will be preserving its forest as a global asset and receiving compensation or payment from the international community.
“In Guyana, we had one of the largest per capita carbon credit arrangements with Norway where we got more than US$200 million for our standing forests as a tool in storing carbon. So, the carbon market is there. So, we expect that the developed world, the international community and even the Private Sector [pay us]. It must be a tradeable commodity,” he told the Channel 4 News reporter.
Guyana’s total forest cover of some 18.4 million hectares hold carbon in high density of up to 350 tons/hectare. This amounts to approximately 6638 tons/person, which is the second-highest forest carbon stock per capita of any country on earth.
Even with oil and gas we will still be a net carbon sink producer and we will still be keeping our commitment to keeping our forest as a global asset.
The Ali-led Administration has maintained that even with the ongoing oil exploration, and more specifically production activities in the Stabroek Block offshore which has a reserve of more than 10 billion barrels of “light sweet crude” oil, Guyana will still remain a net-zero carbon emitter.
Moreover, President Ali was asked during the interview about Guyana’s confidence in its neighbour, Brazil, which has cut down large stretches of the Amazon rainforest and is now also a signatory to the Glasgow deforestation pledge.
“This is a matter of trust and we are all part of the Amazonia… One of the problems that Brazil had to face is expanding agriculture and the clearing of lands for agriculture space. So, I believe that once the commitment is there and once we find innovative ways of sustaining livelihoods of those who depend on the lands and those communities that are associated with forests then, [the pledge] is viable and it can be achieved.
“But we have to answer the question, how are we going to sustain their livelihoods? How are we going to diversify what they are doing to give them options and that is where valuing standing forests, and having a payment system and structure for standing forests is important,” the Guyanese leader underscored.
Meanwhile, President Ali on Tuesday also met with the Prince of Wales, His Royal Highness Prince Charles at the Scottish Event Campus (SEC) in Glasgow, Scotland.
Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Baroness Patricia Scotland was also present at the meeting.
Discussions during the brief meeting centred on Guyana’s drive to maintain its forests. Prince Charles was also updated on the recent launch of Guyana’s expanded Low Carbon Development Strategy – LCDS 2030, which will drive the county’s energy transition using a mix of clean and renewable sources.
President Ali also thanked the Prince of Wales for his support for forest conservation at a global level.
Prince Charles was named a patron of the Iwokrama International Centre for Rainforest Conservation and Development in 2000 after visiting Guyana and the Iwokrama Forest in the Essequibo.
Also on Tuesday, President Ali held bilateral discussions with the United Kingdom’s Minister for European Neighbourhood and the Americas (Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office), Wendy Morton, at the Scottish Event Campus, where he outlined Guyana’s climate change plans and concerns.
The Guyanese Head of State also informed Morton, who is the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, of Guyana’s expanded Low Carbon Development Strategy that was launched last week for national consultation.
He emphasised the value of the country’s standing forests and his Government’s quest to enhance the livelihoods of its citizens with new opportunities.
President Ali further highlighted the current woes faced by Small Island Developing States (SIDS); he lobbied for a multidimensional vulnerability index (MVI) fund and for developing countries to not only fulfil their current pledges but also state how they intend to do so.
The President underscored the climate emergency and the need to function as a collective unit. With that in mind, he also spoke of the desire by many to restructure existing loans to help countries not only get back on their feet but to satisfy commitments to climate change.
Only Monday, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) launched a plan of action to fully align operations with the Paris Agreement by 2023. This initiative will help 26 borrowing member countries including Guyana to meet their own commitments to combat climate change.
During his presentation to the COP26 climate summit President Ali pledged, among other things, to reduce carbon emissions by 70 per cent by 2030.
Nevertheless, the Guyanese leader and the UK Minister also discussed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the need to reprioritise finances to deal with issues such as education regression.
In turn, Morton enquired about Guyana’s plan regarding its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and said she was interested in improving trade relations between the two countries.
