Guyana’s Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan on Thursday, April 11, participated in a signing ceremony with Ms. Tahseen Khan, World Bank Country Director for the Caribbean, on a loan agreement to build human resource capacity in the Oil and Gas Sector.
Mr. Jordan noted the timely nature of the loan agreement as it sought to provide much needed technical assistance to the emerging Oil and Gas Sector.
The loan allows for technical assistance activities to support enhancement of the transparency, governance, legal, regulatory and institutional frameworks for Guyana’s emerging petroleum sector.
In its appraisal of the US$20M programme, the World Bank said a well-managed O&G sector can bring huge positive and sustainable impacts to Guyana, including socioeconomic growth and positive economic externalities.
Ms. Khan informed that the loan agreement will aid in building capacity of key institutions, such as the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Ministry of Finance, for prudent management of the oil revenues.
The Guyanese Finance Minister was accompanied by Dr. Gobind Ganga, Governor, Bank of Guyana, Dr. Riyad Insanally, Guyana’s Ambassador to USA and Mr. Jason Fields from the Embassy of Guyana.
The main economic impact of the oil sector on Guyana is expected to take place through oil revenues, which offer an opportunity to expand public investment in both human and physical capital, lifting key constraints to inclusive growth, the World Bank has said.
