News

-cooperation, collaboration in key areas discussed

Georgetown, Ministry of Finance, January 11, 2022: Senior Finance Minister Dr. Ashni K. Singh today met with visiting Commonwealth Secretary-General Rt Hon Patricia Scotland QC and her delegation at the Ministry of Finance where the two officials discussed cooperation and collaboration in a number of key areas.

During the meeting, Minister Singh welcomed the Secretary-General and her team to Guyana and indicated that the President Irfaan-Ali led Government continues to believe strongly in the Commonwealth’s relevance and its importance in the current contemporary situation in Commonwealth countries such as Guyana.

“Even when we were in Government (before) we could recall there were a number of important pressing global problems whereby the Commonwealth played an integral role. Our issues in Climate Change was one example but there were other things like the Multi-dimensional Vulnerability Index. In particular, the Commonwealth has demonstrated a unique leadership on Small States issues and that is in particular, a topic that we feel very strongly about,” Dr. Singh said.

Minister Singh noted that there is a long list of areas in which Guyana would have benefitted through the Commonwealth (in terms of support) with two at the top of the list being the role the Commonwealth played in supporting Guyana’s fight for its democracy in 2020 and the issue pertaining to Guyana’s relationship with Venezuela.

For her part, the Commonwealth Secretary-General noted that the current period is a new era where small States have a pivotal role to play with Guyana’s leadership being of particular importance in terms of its current approach to development as it is not only focused on oil and gas but also on developing other areas (sectors).

She added that Small States despite possessing only small voices, will be very powerful especially since the small States have demonstrated graphically the consequences of Climate Change. With Guyana being both a part of CARICOM as well as a part of the Commonwealth, the Commonwealth Secretary-General also noted that the country will be a major focus of the Commonwealth in terms of its management approaches as this may serve as a model for other small States.

Meanwhile, other areas discussed (in which both teams can cooperate and collaborate) included debt-management, good governance and anti-corruption, information communication technology in terms of digital solutions for effective financial management as well as the development of upstream petroleum policies.

The Commonwealth Secretary-General was accompanied by Director and Head of the SG’s Office, Ms. Deborah Jamieson; Senior Director, Governance and Peace Directorate, Professor Luis Franceschi, Assistant Research Officer of the SG’s Office, Mr. Francis Wanjiku and Assistant Research Officer of the Governance and Peace Directorate, Ms. Fayola Fraser.

Accompanying the Senior Finance Minister at the meeting were Finance Secretary, Mr. Sukrishnalall Pasha, Director of Projects (Project Cycle Management Division), Mr. Tarachand Balgobin, Head (Bilateral Division) Ms. Donna Levi and Head (Debt Management Division), Ms. Donna Yearwood.

Georgetown, Ministry of Finance, January 7, 2022: Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance Dr. Ashni Singh today confirmed that no money will be withdrawn from the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) without Parliamentary approval. The Minister made this clarification on the sidelines of Budget 2022 meetings and preparation, a Budget that will soon be presented to the National Assembly, on a date that Minister Singh has stopped short of disclosing.

Minister Singh explained that though he signed the Commencement Order for the NRF on December 31 last which states: ‘I appoint the 1 st Day of January, 2022 as the date on which he Natural Resource Fund Act shall come into operation’ that he wished to make it clear that no monies can be withdrawn from the NRF unless there is Parliamentary approval.

“Not a cent CAN be withdrawn without prior parliamentary approval, not a cent HAS been withdrawn and not a cent WILL be withdrawn until approved by Parliament”, Dr. Singh said.

The new Natural Resource Fund Act was assented to on December 30, a day after its passage in the National Assembly. The Law brings legitimacy to the legal framework governing the Natural Resource Fund having replaced the illegitimate and cumbersome act passed by the previous caretaker administration. This Law now allows for substantial improvement in the management of the natural resource wealth of Guyana for the present and future benefit of all citizens. It contains enhanced clauses (replacing defective clauses in the old NRF 2019 Act) including a significant one which provides for the establishment of a Board of Directors that will be responsible for reviewing and approving the policies of the Fund and monitoring its performance thereby separating the management of the Fund from the Minister responsible for Finance. Another key amendment in the new legislation is that the Minister of Finance could face up to ten years imprisonment if he fails to disclose the receipt of any petroleum revenue received by Government in the Official Gazette within three months of receipt of such monies which highlights the seriousness of Government’s commitment to accountability and transparency.

-despite main Opposition displaying thuggish behavior, bullyism in attempts to stall legislation

-after illegally rushing defective old Bill through Parliament following No- Confidence Motion 2018 defeat

-hiding US $18M signing Bonus later claimed to be ‘Gift’ after admitting receipt

Georgetown, Ministry of Finance, December 29, 2021:-Even after a former Minister of Finance under its tenure was charged recently with misconduct in public office for a sale at a highly undervalued amount of prime state property and incidentally being the said individual who while holding the post of Finance Minister deliberately did not disclose receipt of a US$18M signing bonus from ExxonMobil and continuing to deny same in the National Assembly until evidence emerged to prove otherwise, the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance for Change (APNU/AFC) party now in Opposition, today chanted in full defiance of the Speaker of the National Assembly in attempts to bully the current Minister of Finance as he stood to commence the debate on the new Natural Resource Fund (NRF) Bill this evening. The new Bill seeks to pave the way for significantly improved management of Guyana’s oil revenue so as to especially ensure greater transparency and accountability. The Bill was tabled by Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh on December 16 last seeking to repeal the NRF Act of 2019.

A recap of the previous Bill:

The former Natural Resources Fund Bill was illegitimately passed by the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance for Change (APNU/AFC) in the National Assembly on January 3, 2019 after a No-Confidence Motion (NCM) was passed in Parliament against that party the month before (December 21, 2018). As such, the then Opposition (People’s Progressive Party/Civic) was not in Parliament when the Bill was approved.

In 2017, there was uproar in the public when it was unearthed that a US$18 million signature bonus had been collected by the then Government. Former Finance Minister Winston Jordan and other Government Ministers at the time had even denied ever receiving this sum until information came to light, exposing that the Ministry of Finance asked the Bank of Guyana to set up a special account in which the amount was to be placed. After reluctant admission by the APNU administration subsequently, the public was still never provided with an explanation as to what the funds were spent on, despite the monies being belatedly placed in the Consolidated Fund as required by Law and after the then Opposition took the matter to Court. With the provisions in the new Act, a situation like this could never repeat itself.

The new Bill passed today contains enhanced clauses, including a significant one which provides for the establishment of a Board of Directors that will be responsible for reviewing and approving the policies of the Fund and monitoring its performance, thereby separating the management of the Fund from the Minister responsible for finance.

Below is a table outlining the major differences between the former Bill and the one which was slated for debate this evening in the National Assembly:

Below is a table outlining the major differences between the former Bill and the one which was
slated for debate this evening in the National Assembly:

One key amendment in the legislation is that the Minister of Finance could face up to ten years imprisonment if he fails to disclose the receipt of any petroleum revenue received by Government in the Official Gazette within three months of receipt of such monies.

The new law will substantially improve the management of the natural resource wealth of Guyana for the present and future benefit of all citizens.

-Budget process for Constitutional Agencies to be strengthened and streamlined while preserving their independence

Georgetown, Ministry of Finance, December 29 2021:-The Fiscal Management and Accountability Amendment Bill piloted by Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance Dr. Ashni Singh was late this evening approved in the National Assembly during the Thirty Fourth Sitting of the Twelfth Parliament. The Bill is expected to strengthen and streamline the budget process for Constitutional Agencies and simultaneous preserve the independence of those agencies. It also includes amendments which will ensure accountability and sets out the practice and procedure to which these Constitutional Agencies must conform in the management of their subventions for the efficient discharge of their functions.

For example, the Bill amends the FMAA Act Chapter 73:02 for the purpose of ‘prescribing the manner in which budgets are approved and withdrawals are made from the Consolidated Fund in respect of Constitutional Agencies’. It also includes an amendment to section 15 of the FMAA to require that an annual budget proposed to include a motion in compliance with article 218 and 222 A of the Constitution. Another amendment seeks to amend section 40 e of the Audit Act to provide for the presentation of the Audit Office Budget.

Prior to this amendment Bill, in January 2021, Minister Singh tabled a motion for an amendment to the Fiscal Management and Accountability (Amendment) Act 2021 which amended the FMAA Chapter 73:02 to allow for the correction of a number of anomalies relating to the budget process applicable to constitutional agencies.

The amendments were as a consequence of a 2015 amendment to the FMAA by the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance for Change (APNU/AFC) during their tenure whereby constitutional agencies’ budgets were required to be sent to the National assembly in advance of the submission of the rest of the National Budget. This two-stage process resulted in a fragmented and inefficient process for consideration of the National Budget and denied the Parliament an opportunity to view and consider the budget in a comprehensive manner.