Guyana defends track record on human rights issues at UN Forum

• Highlights significant strides to ensure healthcare, education services are accessible

Guyana’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett on Tuesday rigorously defended the country’s efforts to tackle issues relating to human rights.

Birkett was at the time leading a team that responded to questions and recommendations raised at the OHCHR-UN Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in Geneva, Switzerland.

Guyana is among fourteen nations that are earmarked to have their human rights record reviewed. This is Guyana’s fourth review, with its most recent occurrence happening in January of 2020.

Responding to a number of questions and recommendations made by several country representatives, Birkett noted that the Government of Guyana has placed a keen focus on developing appropriate systems to ensure that the human rights of all Guyanese are upheld.

She said that this implementation is happening through several projects that span many areas, including healthcare, education, prison reform, and domestic violence.

In direct response to Guyana maintaining a respectful environment for all ethnic groups, Birkett said that the government remains committed to honouring its unique diversity.

“We see diversity as strength, but we also see that if you do not invest in diversity, it can be used to ferment divisions. And so, we continue every day to work as a government to bring our people together because if we’re stronger together, we would be able to have our development at a more rapid pace if we are united,” she explained.

The former Minister of Amerindian Affairs highlighted the government’s aggressive drive to bridge the digital divide between coastal and rural communities. She noted that through the Office of the Prime Minister’s expansive hinterland connectivity programme, a significant portion of Amerindian communities have already benefitted from internet access.

This, Birkett said, is a critical component of ensuring equitable access for all Guyanese.

“Already, we have had a tremendous increase in digital connectivity to our rural areas because they were the ones who were suffering all along and we continue to engage with several providers for additional connectivity…we realize that if the digital divide continues, we cannot speak of development in a fulsome way,” Birkett posited.

The UPR Working Group will adopt the recommendations made to Guyana on Friday, May 9, 2025.

Guyana’s delegation also included Minister of Tourism, Industry, and Commerce Oneidge Walrond, Senior Research Officer in the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, and other technical officials. [DPI]