Joint Statement by His Excellency Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and His Excellency Mr Luis Abinader, President of the Dominican Republic

His Excellency Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana welcomed His Excellency Mr Luis Abinader and his delegation of high-level Government Officials and members of the private sector to Georgetown, on Thursday, June 1, 2023.

The Presidents engaged in discussions focused on enhancing bilateral relations between the two countries and expressed their commitment to pursue greater collaboration, particularly in the areas of energy, agriculture, tourism, trade, ICT, infrastructure and industry.

They hailed the establishment of a Dominican Republic Embassy in Georgetown and the accreditation of the resident Ambassador, HE Ernesto Torres Pereyra as a tangible step in relations which will augur well for enhanced cooperation and facilitate opportunities for further engagement in the advancement of the bilateral agenda between Guyana and the Dominican Republic.

President Ali welcomed the keen interest of the private sector from the Dominican Republic in Guyana. Both Presidents recognised the important contribution which the private sectors of the two countries could make in advancing this agenda and encouraged increased collaboration and partnership between businesses of Guyana and the Dominican Republic including increased investments by companies from both countries.

In this regard, they looked forward to the early commencement of commercial flights by Skycana which would provide the opportunity for increased tourism and greater ease of travel in and out of Guyana.

The Presidents also discussed issues of mutual interest and concern on the regional, hemispheric and multilateral agendas and undertook to strengthen their resolve to collectively work on advocating in the interest of Small Island Developing States to address challenges including food security, energy security and the impact of climate change.

They expressed concerns over the great risks posed to their economies by sargassum and agreed to work together to find measures to mitigate the impact.

They reiterated the rule of law, protection of sovereignty and territorial integrity, respect for democracy, the promotion of human rights and sustainable development of their countries as paramount pillars for the maintenance of peace and security in the region.

They noted each other’s post-Covid economic recovery efforts and underscored the value of continued engagement and advocacy at the international level for an enabling environment to facilitate the sustainable development of their countries.

In reviewing the political situation in the Republic of Haiti, the Presidents agreed that Haiti is an important member of the Caribbean family of nations. They, therefore, welcomed the establishment of the CARICOM Eminent Persons Group on Haiti to be supported by a technical team. They pledged the full support of their Governments towards the achievement of political stability in Haiti.

The two Presidents lauded the efforts of their Ministries of Foreign Affairs in the conclusion of three bilateral Agreements and witnessed their signing.

• Memorandum of Understanding on Political Consultation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Dominican Republic.

• Air Services Agreement between the Government of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and the Government of the Dominican Republic.

• Memorandum of Understanding on Energy Cooperation between the Government of Guyana and the Government of the Dominican Republic.

Further, the two Presidents agreed to establish a high-level working group to advance and monitor the various areas identified for cooperation.

President Ali committed to paying a reciprocal visit to the Dominican Republic by the end of June 2023.