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RESPONSE BY HIS EXCELLENCY BHARRAT JAGDEO
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF GUYANA
TO THE ACCREDITATION SPEECH BY
HIS EXCELLENCY ROLAND BULLEN
AMBASSADOR OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Excellency,

I accept, with pleasure, the Letters of Credence by which His Excellency, President George W. Bush accredits you as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Guyana. In extending a warm welcome to you and my best wishes for a successful tour of duty, I wish to assure you of the full support of the Government in the execution of your responsibilities as Ambassador of the United States of America to Guyana. Excellency, as a developing country, Guyana is cognizant of the need for us to develop partnerships with other states in the international community based on common positions and concerns. This need has been increased by the recent heightened terrorist activities in our world and Guyana recognizes that it is now more than necessary for all countries to collaborate effectively to ensure that a world of peace and stability prevails.
Excellency, with the help of President George Bush Sr. and President Carter, we now have a democratically elected and representative Government in Guyana. This fledgling democracy continues to be tested. And we hope therefore that we can count on your assistance for it’s consolidation and growth. We have put a high premium on honest, open and transparent systems of government and have therefore taken several measures, including necessary legislation, to fight corruption and to restore public accountability. We also need, in Guyana, a new political culture based on an ethic of cooperation instead of confrontation. The nation’s problems cannot be solved by street marches and mob violence. Only through dialogue and negotiation can we resolve our political differences and reach consensus on the way forward. For its part, the Government has created, through constitutional reform and the establishment of a number of Parliamentary Committees, and Commissions opportunities for consultation and consensus-building. It is now up to the parties in the process to avail themselves fully of these new mechanisms.
Excellency, in your speech, you have alluded to the many problems that now confront our country and demand swift solutions if we are to achieve economic and social progress. In the area of crime and security, we have been fortunately able to contain the upsurge in violence which only months ago threatened to cripple our society. However if we are to win the battle against arms, drugs and people trafficking and also ensure that the criminal deportees do not add to our problem of security, we will need more assistance from our friends particularly the United States. The United States continues to play especially through USAID a critical role in support of economic restructuring by providing economic and technical assistance, promoting the reform of agriculture policies and providing macro-economic, trade and private sector policy advice. As you know, Mr. Ambassador, my Government is committed trade liberalization and a free market. However, as a small and highly vulnerable economy, we cannot compete in these new conditions without special and differential treatment and resources for infrastructure building. We will therefore look to the United States for support on this issue. I also welcome and appreciate the helpful initiative taken by the Government of the United States in providing significant funding for the anti-HIV/AIDS campaign in Guyana. From our scarce budgetary resources we have allocated funds to deal with this pandemic by raising public awareness and even providing in some cases anti retro-viral drugs. We would however need greater external support in this effort. Mr. Ambassador, just one decade ago the stock of external debt was in excess of 700% of our Gross Domestic Product and it’s servicing accounted for more than 90% of government’s revenue. We have managed through hard work and considerable international support to reduce this burden on our people. However, debt servicing still takes up too much of our resources, resources that could be utilized for improving health care and education, reducing poverty and promoting economic growth. I hope that we can count on your support for an early completion point for the Enhanced HIPC Initiative. Excellency, happily, our two countries have established, over the years, a good record of cooperation not only on bilateral matters but also on many regional and international issues that are of concern to us. This is not surprising since, apart from our long historical association, we share many common values and aspirations. Our diaspora in the United States now forms a special link between our two countries that reinforces our relationship with these few remarks on some of the issues which must engage our joint attention, Mr. Ambassador, I welcome you to Guyana and hope that your stay with us will be both pleasant and productive.

Office of the President
Georgetown

August 14, 2003