As Guyana sets its focus on new economic possibilities in 2022, President Irfaan Ali has cautioned that the year ahead will not be without challenges but said it will be one with big wins for Guyanese.
On New Year’s eve, Dr. Ali promised the nation that the government will confront the challenges.
“The challenges will be enormous but we must confront the challenges and we must win,” the Guyanese Head of State said.
From the Office of the President at Shiv Chanderpaul Drive, Dr. Ali gave the assurance as he signed into law the recently passed Local Content Bill.
The law seeks to prioritize Guyanese nationals and Guyanese companies in the procurement of goods and services for the enhancement of the value chain of the petroleum sector and to enable local capacity development.
“This sets the framework for Guyanese to win and that’s what I’m interested in,” he added.
In spite of this forward step for locals, Dr, Ali said the country was still dealing with global supply chain challenges, lockdown in other parts of the world which has affected the movement of people, and high numbers of people still unvaccinated against COVID-19.
“We have contributed significantly to the region and world… We can assure the region and our global community that our prosperity will bring a better environment for the rest of the world,” he added.
On Thursday, after the successful passage of the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) Bill Dr. Ali also signed it into law the Natural Resource Fund Act.
That law will see the government presenting possibly the biggest budget in the country’s history in early 2022.
The President has also signed the Fiscal Management and Accountability Amendment (FMAA) legislation into law.
It is expected to strengthen and streamline the budget process for Constitutional Agencies and simultaneously preserve the independence of those agencies.
