GUYANA is intensifying its advocacy for continued access to concessional development financing, even as the country’s per capita income increases, Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh, has said.
Speaking during a recent discussion on Guyana’s development partnership with the World Bank, on the National Communications Network, Dr Singh underscored that the country has long benefitted from high concessional financing through the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank’s arm for vulnerable countries.
He noted that IDA resources have played a “tremendously successful” role in financing critical social and economic investments over the years, including education, public health care, and transport infrastructural projects.
“I want to say at the onset that we have historically argued stridently against the use of per capita income for the purposes of determining eligibility for concessional resources. This has been an argument that we’ve been making for a long time, even before we had the good fortune of rising per capita income,” the Finance Minister said.
Access to these funds are largely determined by per capita income, and Guyana’s rapid economic expansion driven in part by its emerging oil and gas repositions the country’s potential to access some concessions.
“We recognise that as our economy changes and goes through this rapid transformation, the engagement with the bank must necessarily change, and is changing,” he explained, noting that access to IDA is tied to per capita income.
“There is a discussion going on about possible loss of access to IDA resource, which is a challenge that we’re facing with many other development partners. [As] our per capita income rises, our access to concessional windows has been contracting with some institutions.”
He stressed that Guyana has consistently opposed the use of per capita income as the primary criterion for determining access to concessional resources, arguing that it is too narrow a measure for development need and vulnerability.
While acknowledging that Guyana may not ultimately prevail in changing the rules, Dr Singh made clear that the government will “continue to argue the case” for broader eligibility criteria that reflect structural vulnerabilities, climate risks, and development gaps.
EVOLVING ENGAGEMENT WITH THE WORLD BANK
Further, Dr Singh said Guyana’s relationship with the World Bank is deepening and diversifying.
“We recognise that as our economy changes and goes through this rapid transformation, the engagement with the bank must necessarily change, and is changing.”
He pointed out that, in line with the country’s rapid economic transformation, the nature of its engagement with the World Bank Group is shifting towards a wider suite of financial instruments and partnerships; these include private sector–focused financing and risk mitigation, via the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)
He noted that the private sector arm of the World Bank is now doing “a lot more” in Guyana, in step with the pace of private sector growth, and that the government is actively encouraging the Bank to scale up its involvement.
“We recognise that as our economy changes and goes through this rapid transformation, the engagement with the bank must necessarily change, and is changing,” he said, stressing that Guyana is also determined to make full use of the broader toolkit available across the World Bank Group as it navigates a period of rapid transformation.
NEW DIMENSIONS
Looking ahead, Dr Singh characterised the World Bank as a longstanding and reliable partner, including during what he described as “considerably more difficult years” for the country.
He signalled that Guyana intends to remain an active and engaged member of the World Bank Group, even as the structure of its financing and co-operation evolves.
The government’s overarching objective, he reiterated, is to translate strong economic growth into sustained improvements in the quality of life for all Guyanese citizens through better social services, high-quality jobs and modern infrastructure while continuing to leverage international partnerships such as that with the World Bank.
“We see the engagement evolving into entering new dimensions. We see a continued strong partnership with the World Bank Group, even as we go through these changes, and even as the relationship changes, we have every intention of continuing to be active members of the World Bank Group,” he said.
Source: Guyana Chronicle