Jagdeo - File

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (CMC):

Guyana president Bharrat Jagdeo left for Nigeria promising to intensify Guyana's debt-relief lobbying efforts.

Jagdeo told the Government Information Agency (GINA) that he would use the inaugural two-day South America - Africa summit, which started yesterday "to continue discussions on debt-relief for Guyana."

He said that the additional debt relief would help promote "better education, health care, water supply," for the country, and would be used to provide better social and economic infrastructure, help to generate more jobs for young people and get them more involved in the information technology revolution.

Guyana was among several Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) recently identified for debt relief by the United States-based Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) which Jagdeo said would enhance the country's debt profile.

"It's not going to be US$400 million a year - we'll save a smaller amount - but the stock of debt would be significantly reduced which gives us a better debt profile," Jagdeo told GINA.

Four years ago, Guyana's external debt was estimated at US$1.2 billion.

The president said his country was no longer "an international basket case, and we've come a far way in that regard, so I'm very excited about the prospects".

The Inter-American Development Bank has proposed a 100 per cent cancellation of the debts of hemispheric countries Guyana, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Honduras and Haiti.

"We think that will succeed. For this resolution to pass you have to have 15 countries voting in favour of it, and more than 15 countries at the meeting expressed support for the resolution," Jagdeo said of the IDB proposal.

"You have to have more than 50 per cent of the shareholding of the Bank and between Brazil and the United States alone, they have close to 60 per cent of the shareholding of the FSO (Fund for Special Operations)."

Both those countries are backing the debt relief measures, Jagdeo said.

Very important

"That (100 per cent debt-relief) is very, very important for us because this is what we've been lobbying for from the time the Group of eight announced the initiative for multilateral debt-relief," he said.

"Now, depending if we get what we want, the debt relief in Guyana's case would be closer to US$400 million, the worst case scenario is US$275 million."

He said that Guyana is waiting to see what amount would be approved and that he was still pressing for a December 2004 cut-off date and a total stock of debt eligible for the relief.

"I said to the other countries, we need to continue the lobbying effort (and) to speak to our colleagues in the region," Jagdeo told GINA.

He said he would use next week's Bolivia visit for the South American Community of Nations (SACN) to ensure a statement is included in the communique.

"On this trip to Nigeria, I'll be travelling with President Lula (of Brazil) on his aircraft, so I hope I can discuss this matter with him," Jagdeo said.