‘High-level’ team to help strengthen Guyana’s security system – President Ali

A high-level team is being assembled to strengthen Guyana’s security system, the country’s Head of State said on Monday, while urging local prison officers to remain cognisant of the growing threats regionally.

President Dr. Irfaan Ali spoke on Monday while addressing the opening of the Guyana Prison Service Annual Senior Correctional Officers Conference. The conference is being held from March 16 to 20 with participation from several delegations from across the region.

In a wide-ranging presentation, President Ali stressed the importance of situational awareness in a changing regional security environment. According to him, conferences of this nature must take into account the realities facing the region, particularly the shifting movements of organised crime.

He explained that as authorities clamp down on criminal networks in major economies, those groups often seek new areas where they can operate.

“As pressure grows in other large economies, criminal networks are pressed. When they are pressed, they look for new grounds. You have to identify where those grounds are, and here in Guyana, we know with the growth in the country, there is a natural attraction,” he noted.

President Ali said preparing for these potential threats requires strong data analysis and strategic planning within the security sector.

In Guyana, efforts are being made to fortify the security sector overall.

The President said a high-level team aimed at strengthening the country’s security systems will be established.

“In the coming weeks, I will be launching a high-powered group of experienced persons that will look not only at the integration of our system but that would also be taking the lead on everything I spoke of this morning,” he said.

Meanwhile, President Ali further emphasised that the prison service plays a critical role in the country’s overall security framework.

“It is a part of the integrated national security architecture of the country,” he stated.