Two months after the President of Guyana, Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, and Surinamese President, Chandrikapersad Santokhi, met and agreed to cooperate in areas including oil and gas, a Ministerial delegation from Suriname including the Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Business and International Cooperation, Albert Ramdin, will be arriving in Guyana today, October 14, for a three-day trip.
According to a press release from the Guyana Government, during the visit Foreign Minister Ramdin is expected to meet with Guyana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Todd, to continue consultations on the various initiatives agreed upon by the Presidents of the two countries in August. Suriname’s Minister of Public Works, Riad Nurmohamed, Minister of Public Health, Amar Ramadhin, and other Government Officials will also be part of the Suriname delegation.
It was also indicated that the discussions will focus on preparation for the launch of a Strategic Dialogue and Cooperation Platform (SDCP).
Back in August, the leaders of the two countries discussed new opportunities from emerging sectors as the two neighbours face “similar challenges, circumstances and opportunities.”
While Guyana only discovered oil in 2015, Suriname has been an onshore oil producer since the 1980’s. However, Suriname’s first offshore discovery was made at the Maka Central-1 well in January 2020 and the second one at the Sapakara West-1 well in early April. The third discovery–Kwaskwasi-1 was made in July. To date, Guyana’s offshore discoveries have been estimated to be over 8 billion barrels of oil equivalent resources at the Stabroek block while Suriname’s resources at Block 58 where its discoveries have been made, are estimated to be be about 6.5 billion barrels.
During a joint press conference with the Suriname President in August, President Ali said, “It is very critical for us to work together to find common solutions, to collaborate and to support each other in tackling the challenges whilst at the same time confronting the opportunities that both countries and the people from both countries can benefit from.”
President Santhoki had said the cooperation will not be a “government and government cooperation only” but will include the private sector as there are many Surinamese companies operating in Guyana.
