Government has full confidence in new GYEITI Coordinator’s ability
The Ministry of Natural Resources notes a statement emanating from the Alliance for Change (AFC) on its decision to appoint a new National Coordinator to the Guyana Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (GYEITI) Secretariat, and would like to correct falsehoods and misleading claims contained within the said statement.
The Ministry had, months ago, invited applications f0r the post of National Coordinator for GYEITI. The contract for the previous Coordinator, Dr. Rudy Jadoopat, had expired almost a year ago, but the Ministry decided to keep Dr. Jadoopat on until it found a competent replacement. It was necessary that the vacancy be sufficiently advertised, and that the review process be above board.
The position had been granted to Dr. Jadoopat, an active member of the AFC New York chapter, due to his political affiliation. This modus operandi of the previous administration, of installing politically affiliated officials, was also demonstrated in its appointment of the Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency, Dr. Vincent Adams, and the Director of the Compliance Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Mr. Derrick Lawrence.
Dr. Jadoopat re-applied and was interviewed for the post of GYEITI National Coordinator, in an objective recruitment process. However, Dr. Prem Misir was short listed as the best candidate.
Dr. Misir has a proven track record of excellent performance, and a wealth of experience and knowledge.
The Ministry of Natural Resources is confident in Dr. Misir’s ability to ensure that the work of the GYEITI Secretariat maintains a high level of integrity, for the promotion of transparency in Guyana’s extractive sectors, in tandem with the new GYEITI multi-stakeholder group which was appointed in September 2021.
It is prudent to note that the PPP/C is the only government to have committed to working on a beneficial ownership register and has already commenced the procurement process for consultants to achieve this objective – in line with EITI requirements and civil society calls. These calls fell on deaf ears during the previous administration.
More on Dr. Prem Misir
Dr. Misir has served as Pro Vice-Chancellor, Professor and Head of the School of Public Health of the University of the South Pacific, Solomon Islands Campus. He was Vice Chancellor of the University of Fiji, and Pro-Chancellor and Education Advisor at the University of Guyana. He was Visiting Professor at the University of the West Indies, Visiting Professor at Anton de Kom University of Suriname, and Honorary Professor at the University of Central Lancashire.
He has also served as Executive Director for the Health Sector Development Unit at the Ministry of Health, and the Country Representative for the Global Fund, Country Coordinating Mechanism to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
Dr. Misir has a Bachelor of Social Science degree (B.S.Sc. Honours) in Social and Behavioral Sciences from Queens University Belfast, a postgraduate research masters (MPhil) from the University of Surrey in Social and Behavioral Sciences, and a Master of Public Health (MPH) from the University of Manchester in Medical and Human Sciences.
He is a fellow of the Royal Society for Public Health, and has a PhD with commendation in Social and Behavioral Sciences from the University of Hull. He is also certified by Harvard University in Improving Global Health: Focusing on Quality and Safety. Dr. Misir is the author of 12 books and several journals.