USA National Day 2019
The Cooperative Republic of Guyana extends congratulations to the government and people of the United State of America on the occasion of the 243rd anniversary of its Declaration of Independence.
Guyana and the United States have enjoyed excellent relations since the establishment of formal diplomatic ties in August 1966, the year of our independence. Our countries have cultivated a strong, stable and sound relationship over the past 53 years.
Guyanese are bound by history, kinship and friendship to the USA, the largest economy and the third-largest country in the world. Guyana and the USA have founded their friendship on the principles of mutual non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, mutual respect for each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, cooperation for mutual benefit, respect for international law and treaties and the maintenance of international peace and security.
Your Excellencies, the USA continues to be one of Guyana’s most significant trade and investment partners. We appreciate the cooperation programmes, which have contributed to our national development and social change.
Initiatives such as the Maternal Child Survival Programme; the Strengthening of the Criminal Justice System; and numerous USAID, governance and security training programmes offered to our Defence and Police Forces. These all augment our human resource capacity and have been invaluable to Guyana’s development.
Your Excellencies, Guyana continues to benefit from the US SOUTHCOM’s New Horizons series of projects which began in 2004. This project has contributed to Guyana’s public health and public education systems through the building of clinics, community centres, schools and the hosting of joint medical outreaches. All of these promote peace and stability and augment the development of the social infrastructure so necessary for improving citizens’ quality of life.
The USA has sustained cooperation in health, education and the environment with the current cohort of thirty-three Peace Corps volunteers assisting the Ministries of Public Health, Education and the Department of the Environment in improving primary literacy, supporting adolescents in youth-friendly spaces and raising awareness of domestic and environmental issues.
Guyana benefits from the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in the global fight against the disease – an initiative guided by Millennium Development Goal of halting the spread, improving treatment and the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV and AIDS.
Guyana – guided by its own Green State Development Strategy – is in transition towards establishing a “green state”, one that will place emphasis on the protection of our environment, the preservation of our biodiversity, the promotion of renewable energy and the adoption of practical measures to ensure climate adaptation.
Guyana looks forward to continued cooperation with the USA as we advance towards securing a better life for all our people in the western hemisphere and the Caribbean.
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, I invite you to join me in a toast to the health of His Excellency President Donald Trump, to the prosperity of the people of the United States of America and to the continued strong relations and friendship between our states. Ω.
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