Diversified, Resilient, Low-carbon, People-centred VOLUME I POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS, FINANCIAL MECHANISM & IMPLEMENTATION An inclusive and prosperous Guyana that provides a good quality of life for all its citizens “ based on sound education and social protection, low-carbon resilient development, new economic opportunities, justice, and political empowerment. ” Executive Summary Background The Green State Development Strategy: Vision 2040 is Guyana’s twenty-year, national development policy that reflects the guiding vision and principles of the ‘green agenda’: “An inclusive and prosperous Guyana that provides a good quality of life for all its citizens based on sound education and social protection, low-carbon and resilient development, providing new economic opportunities, justice and political empowerment.” The central objective is development that provides a better quality of life for all Guyanese derived from the country’s natural wealth – its diversity of people and abundant natural resources (land, water, forests, mineral and aggregates, biodiversity). The vision of the ‘green agenda’ is centred on principles of a green economy defined by sustainable, low-carbon and resilient development that uses its resources efficiently, and sustained over generations. The development philosophy emphasises the importance of a more cohesive society based on principles of equity and tolerance between ethnic groups – recognising that diversity of culture and heritage is the underlying strength of the country’s human capital. Development objectives therefore seek to improve the health, education and overall well-being of Guyanese citizens, to lift people out of poverty through an economy that generates decent jobs and that provides opportunities for sustaining livelihoods over the long term. For decades, geopolitical events, natural disasters and global commodity price swings have weighed upon Guyana’s development. Its economy is heavily dependent on primary commodities, which provide little opportunity for economic diversification, and consequently employment. Growth is lagging behind that of its regional counterparts. Levels of education and health require significant improvement to build up human capital – knowledge, skills, creativity and wellbeing – that are essential for a transforming, productive and diversified economy, and society. The country’s institutions are in need of reform to ensure greater transparency, participation and confidence among the citizenry and to drive the anticipated change. 1“Framework of the Guyana Green State Development Strategy and Financing Mechanism”, Government of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and UN Environment, March 2017; 62pp. 1 Green State Development Strategy: Vision 2040 The Strategy was developed from a multi-layered, nationwide, stakeholder consultation process. A first level produced the Framework completed in 2017 that prioritised Guyana’s long term development within seven themes. In the following year, seven multi-stakeholder, thematic expert groups with 136 participating professionals from Guyana’s public and private sector and civil society groups, were formed to deliberate on the development themes. Their work established the policy trajectory under each theme. A third layer of consultations ensured input from Guyanese citizens through meetings held at 32 cluster sites in coastal and hinterland areas, drawing participation from more than 1,600 citizens in surrounding communities and villages. “Green Conversations” – public and media events were also organised in the capital city and main regional towns and featured international and local speakers and interactive question-and-answer sessions discussing relevant ‘green’ topics. Several technical workshops were conducted that built skills and shared knowledge on development methods and approaches. Senior staff of government ministries and agencies, private sector bodies and civil society groups were consulted and interviewed for their recommendations. These inputs, along with secondary research and analyses conducted by researchers and experts (local and international) are described in the Annexes and have collectively served as the basis for developing the policy recommendations. The Green State Development Strategy: Vision 2040 arrives at a unique stage in Guyana’s future: the country is about to be catapulted onto the global stage as the newest producer of oil and gas. Understanding the proverbial “blessing or curse” that this great fortune may portend, the Strategy is developed on the premise that with revenues generated from the country’s natural wealth, it is now possible to modernise traditional sectors (e.g. forestry, fisheries), maximize efficiency and investment opportunities in high growth sectors (e.g. mining, rice), and invest in future value- adding sectors (e.g. business process outsourcing, tourism and agro-processing), ensuring better opportunities for Guyanese. These aspirations have been locked into national and sector development strategies, policies and plans and have remained largely unimplemented, in some cases, over many decades. Against this backdrop, the Green State Development Strategy: Vision 2040 provides a comprehensive set of strategic action lines to guide public investment. Development objectives are broader than Guyana’s past development strategies and reflect a more holistic view of social, economic and environmental well-being, in line with the country’s commitments to the United Nations’ 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and Goals (SDGs). The Strategy not only aims to foster sustained economic growth that is low-carbon and climate resilient, but a socially cohesive citizenry, based on better business and job opportunities, improved health and education systems, capable institutions that can execute well their mandates to build a resilient, diversified and internationally competitive economy. 2“Managing Future Petroleum Reserves and Establishment of a Fiscal Rule and a Sovereign Wealth Fund”, Ministry of Finance, 2018. Green State Development Strategy: Vision 2040 2 Kaieteur Valley photo credit: Ajay Baksh The Strategy therefore promotes 3 key messages: · Manage natural resource wealth; · Support economic resilience; and · Build human capital and institutional capacity. 3 Green State Development Strategy: Vision 2040 Manage natural resource wealth Sound fiscal and monetary policy is a key objective for managing development of the country’s natural resource wealth. In the coming years, oil and gas revenues could dominate Guyana’s economy and this carries significant risk. The Natural Resource Fund Act was recently passed by the Parliament and the next step is to appoint the Public Accountability Oversight Committee. In addition, national budget operations for the integration of an extensive and long-term social investment programme must transition to a Medium-term Expenditure Framework (MTEF). The Framework will detail over what length of time expenditure ceilings are set and how frequently these are revised. To support longer term public financing, the Ministry of Finance could reallocate the public debt portfolio toward longer term financial instruments and commence plans to establish a sovereign credit rating, in consultation with major credit rating agencies. Sustainable management of land resources are the principal watchwords to guide and safeguard the country’s natural wealth for future generations. From a land use planning perspective, the most important objective of the recommended national land policy is to articulate the priorities for land use and the criteria for determining best use. The institutional architecture of natural resource management in Guyana currently involves a wide range of independent statutory agencies whose mandates often put them in competition. A land policy may not be sufficient, however, to prevent all conflicts, so consideration should be given to designating an overarching land use planning system and institutional mechanism for inter-agency coordination, based on feasibility assessments. Strategic investments are also needed to improve land administration. Establishing a modern land information system at the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GLSC) requires digitising the remaining paper-based systems, upgrading mapping and imaging capacity, and consolidating institutions. Investments are also prioritised for a comprehensive overhaul of geographical information systems (GIS). Efforts to resolve the land rights issues of indigenous peoples must also continue as priority. The proposed revision of the Amerindian Act 2006 will be undertaken through an inclusive and consensual process based on free, prior and informed consent to address issues of concern to indigenous peoples and bring the Act in line with international obligations. This review must consider the broad question of rights to all lands, including customary lands, the powers of the minister and large-scale mining on indigenous lands, among other issues. Natural resources define the country’s natural wealth and require careful management, based on scientific research and a decision-making culture that is uncompromisingly evidence-based. These notably include minerals e.g. gold, diamonds, oil and gas); forests that provide important services in carbon sequestration and maintain traditional livelihoods; biodiversity that ensures healthy, functional ecosystem services and habitats for indigenous communities and flagship species (e.g. the jaguar, spotted caiman, the arapaima). Green State Development