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No position taken as yet on draft report – GGDMA

Jul 23, 2010 News

The Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) says that a draft report being prepared by a special committee to make key recommendations for the industry is still being studied.
As a matter of fact, GGDMA said yesterday, the association has not taken a position on the report as yet since discussions are still ongoing.
Earlier this year, President Bharat Jagdeo appointed the Special Land Use Committee (SLUC), comprising stakeholders of the mining industry, to discuss and make recommendations that would have included some major changes to better protect lands and the miners, among other things.
Miners had expressed unease over new regulations proposed last year that would have mandated them to give six months notice before operations could commence.
While miners had contended the regulation could effectively shut the industry down, government said it was never the intention to do so.
Earlier this year, miners shut Bartica down for a day in protest.
The SLUC, led by Minister of Public Works, Robeson Benn, himself a former head of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, had been extended by the President, following a February meeting with worried miners at the International Convention Centre.
The extended SLUC, as the new body was known, was given a further life and representatives of Mahdia, Linden and Port Kaituma were added to the committee to make a final input.
Yesterday, GGDMA explained that the current discussions in the extended SLUC were to examine how the mining sector can move forward together to bring positive changes to the sector.
“The draft report has just been prepared, and the GGDMA is in the process of reviewing the contents to ensure that it adequately reflects the discussions which formed its basis.
The mining body wishes to state that it has not definitively stated a position on the draft report, rather expressed the opinion on the positive spirit in which the discussions took place.”
The committee, GGDMA said, is currently discussing the draft report with a view to preparing the final report prior to the document being sent to President Bharrat Jagdeo.
“The GGDMA has not defined its position on the report and cannot do so until we have thoroughly examined the contents and the final document is prepared. The team is still in discussion.”
The association also stressed that negotiations were conducted in a professional manner, with respect for the positions on all sides.
“The mandate of the committee was to agree on a position and prepare a report which can be submitted to the cabinet of Guyana to inform them as to the position of the sides. We are confident that once the SLUC has given its approval, the recommendations in the report will be taken seriously as it will serve in the best national interest and will benefit all Guyanese. The mining sector remains the largest private sector employer and the greatest contributor to the Gross Domestic Product of Guyana.”

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