Guyana has supported calls for a second International Decade for People of African Descent. This position was confirmed by Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Oneidge Walrond, as she addressed delegates at the Opening of the Third Session of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent in Geneva, Switzerland on Tuesday.
In December 2013, the UN General Assembly proclaimed 2015-2024 the International Decade for the People of African Descent. There have been general calls for an extension to this period.
“Guyana looks forward to contributing to the efforts toward improving the conditions of people of African descent both by supporting the work of this Forum and by continuing to craft and implement programmes that will redound to the benefit of Guyanese of African Descent,” Minister Walrond said.
She noted that Guyana, as multicultural and multi-ethnic society is mindful of and keen to ensure that the population in its entirety, enjoys the best possible quality of life the country can afford.
The minister added that CARICOM has been at the forefront of demanding reparations for the descendants of enslaved Africans, a position Guyana remains fully committed to. She explained that a National Reparations Committee has already been established, within the framework of a 10-point plan agreed by the CARICOM.
Minister Walrond also congratulated on behalf of CARICOM, Dr. June Soomer, on her assumption of Chair of the United Nations Permanent Forum for People of African Descent. Dr. Soomer is “a distinguished daughter/citizen of the Caribbean Community,” she said.
