Ian Boxill

NOT LONG ago, the Caribbean installed its youngest head of government, Bharrat Jagdeo, in Guyana. Jagdeo, who is only 35 years old, represents the changing landscape of the Caribbean politics; which has remained relatively unchanged since the 1960s.

Put another way, the generation of the 1950s and 1960s, who largely shaped the political and social institutions which we now have in this region are slowly giving way, often reluctantly, to a new political order and by extension a new generation of political leaders. But Guyana is not singular in this political reawakening, since there are other countries in the region which have seen such a shift in political leadership namely St. Lucia, Barbados, St. Kitts/Nevis, Grenada and Dominica.

In all of these cases, especially St. Lucia and Barbados, there are clear signs that the old political order is giving way to a newer and younger one. However, the Guyana case retains intrigue, if only because the new President, Jagedo, is extremely young and despite being a political activist for many years, is still relatively new to the rough and tumble of party politics. Nonetheless, I get the impression that having selected Jagdeo to take over from Mrs. Janet Jagan was an attempt, by his party, to plan for leadership into the future.

But, who is Bharrat Jagdeo? Well, Bharrat Jagdeo was born at Unity Village, East CoastDemerara on January 23, 1964. Bharrat in Hindi means India, which his mother gave him in honour of the ancestral homeland - India. Jagdeo is from a simple, working class family. His father was a railroad worker and his mother, a housewife and peasant farmer; both had the task of raising their six children.

Economics

In the mid-1980s he attended Moscow State University where he obtained a Masters degree in economics in 1990. And, simply for shared academic interest, his now re-born party, the People's Progressive Party (PPP), was once a communist party. As fate would have it, Jagdeo returned home about the time when Guyana was going through a number of political changes, most notably a period when the PPP would hold political power in the country for the first time since the 1960s.

Now, a young man in his 20s, he was appointed to a number of important positions, including Director of the Guyana Water Authority and a director for the Caribbean Development Bank. He was also made a director of Guyana's National Bank of Industry and Commerce. His reputation as a hard worker, or so I am told, led his government to appoint him as Guyana's Governor on the World Bank.

Likewise, he was also Guyana's representative at a number of important international meetings such as the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Before he became president, Jagdeo also held the position of senior finance minister.

Whether the new blood of Jagdeo will help to rescue Guyana from the economic disaster in which it has found itself, for well over two decades, is still left to be seen. Notwithstanding, some observers of Guyanese politics are hopeful that his presence may also signal a change in the nature of Guyana politics. Unfortunately, for many decades, corruption, ethnic conflict and violence have bedevilled our sister country on the South American continent. However, if we are to go by the examples set by the new political leadership in St. Lucia, Barbados and St. Kitts, there may be cause for hope.

Only time will tell.