Oil prospects must not be held hostage - UN Advisor

Oil prospects must not be held hostage – UN Advisor

Jun 16, 2018 ExxonMobil, News

By Kiana Wilburg

The situation Guyana finds itself can be described as both exciting and nerve-wracking. It is exciting over the game-changing potential the oil discoveries bring to accelerate the country’s development agenda.
It is nerve-wracking because there is much work to be done in what is an ever-shortening time-frame.
But in the midst of all this, Guyana’s oil prospects should not be held hostage by short term political opportunism.
Making this point yesterday was United Nations (UN) Peace and Development Advisor, Srdan Deric. He was at the time making his contribution to a conversation on oil and the economy, which was held at Moray House on Camp Street.
There, the official said it would be necessary for the nation to overcome the mistrust which dominates the socio-political sphere. He insisted that this is a key requirement in ensuring the inclusiveness necessary to reach consensus on oil and development related matters.
Deric said that trust requires frank and open dialogue, which needs to start without assumptions of the other sides. He stated too that trust requires debates, which aim to reach a common understanding on the way forward instead of a cheap ‘gotcha’ moment.
The UN official said, “We need understanding instead of competition and compromise instead of victory. I can give you an experience of my own, troubled home country, Bosnia-Herzegovina. The war in Bosnia ended 23 years ago. However, the wounds and the trust have not been successfully healed or nurtured.”
Deric continued, “The three ethnic groups use the lack of trust to perpetuate a dominance of ethno-based political parties and use the lowest-common denominator approach to mobilize their base. In such a situation, reforms, progress and good governance are often the first victims.
“As a result, despite tens of billions in aid and plentiful natural resources, Bosnia is yet to reach the economic indicators it had in 1989.”
He added, “Good governance requires brave leadership. It requires people to acknowledge and agree what the problems are before trying to solve them. The United Nations has been invited by the Government of Guyana to support the process of Constitutional Reform. This will be a long-term process which will probably not get the attention burning issues such as oil revenues and the 2020 General Elections but which can hold the key to reaching the principles of good governance.”
Further to this, Deric stated that a key component in ensuring good governance principles prevail is public outreach and education. In this regard, he noted that a critical mass of Guyanese needs to understand the concepts and the methods to achieve them if they are to have meaningful civil influence.
While some movement is visible in and around Georgetown, such as the Turkeyen and Tain Talks and events organized by Moray House Trust, Deric said it is important to take the show on the road and ensure it reaches the wider public.
He said that leaving no one behind is one of the key pledges of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He stated that it is time citizens begin to think how to implement it here.
The UN official said, “It is also important to add that the SDGs are not just the duty of the UN and member states. The private sector plays a key role as well, especially in the oil and gas sector. The United Nations is engaged with leading global companies to ensure principles of SDG 16 are adopted by these large multinational corporations.”
He added, “We have several examples of this cooperation, perhaps none more famous than Shell’s commitment since 2011 to voluntarily declare all payments made to governments in order to promote transparency and anti-bribery.
“This just indicates that advocacy on good governance principles should not just be limited to governments, political parties and other local stakeholders – large companies should also be engaged.”
Deric said that developmental work across sectors need to anticipate the fundamental changes that may incur with oil and enable the whole population to seize and maximize the opportunities presented in their communities and industries.
He opined that oil can open up opportunities for Guyana to pursue the Sustainable Development Goals but it is not a panacea. He insisted that bold and diligent work in improving all aspects of the SDGs is important and urgent to enable Guyana to take advantage of its oil wealth.
Deric noted that the UN system is working to help the Government improve its policies, capacities and services in order to demonstrate results for people and communities across SDGs.