Guyana building a resilient financial system ahead of “first oil” – Commonwealth reaffirms support

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DPI, GUYANA, Friday, May 4, 2018

Guyana was today commended by Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Rt. Hon.  Patricia Scotland for putting mechanisms in place to protect its financial system, prior to “first oil” in 2020.

The Commonwealth Secretary-General, who was speaking at a press conference hosted on margins of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force Anti-Money Laundering Workshop for Judges and Prosecutors, said the country is building a resilient financial system.

“The Government of Guyana and the people have been asking for assistance in terms of how we structure the new development so that there is in place before the money comes, guidelines and mechanisms which will make it very difficult for corrupt practices to grow.”

The country’s aspiration of building one of the most robust systems in the world, ahead of the potential oil boom, was also lauded by the Secretary-General.

She reaffirmed the Commonwealth Secretariat’s commitment to supporting Guyana in this regard.

Legal Adviser, Shadrach Haruna said in many countries rich in natural resources, the probability of bribery and other corrupt activities are prevalent, therefore the Commonwealth Secretariat is assisting these states with procurement and other training.

Haruna said this training is extended to prosecutors, investigators and procurement officers to prevent corruption and in the event of an occurrence.

“What we do is actually assist the country to develop very good procurement guidelines which will also come from issues of AML/CFT and how to come up with very robust procurement guidelines.”

Guyana has been continuously soliciting the advice and guidance of many international experts and building capacity as it prepares for Petroleum production.

 

By: Stacy Carmichael