‘Wealth derived from oil, gold only benefits the richest in society, poor remains in extreme poverty’ – U.N. Human Rights Committee Member tells Guyana

Mar 28, 2024 News

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– says poor remains in extreme poverty

Kaieteur News – “The wealth derived from oil and gold exploitation and mining only benefits the richest in society leaving the poorest in a situation of extreme poverty,” said French United Nations (UN) Human Rights Committee (CCPR) member Helene Tigroudja. She made that comment last week, during the Government of Guyana appearance before that body. Tigroudja explained that one concern of the committee is the right to consultation and information given to the population. She stated: “often the government seems to take consultation as being a synonym for consent. It doesn’t recognise that those two issues are separate, you consult and then you wait for the consent.”

Tigroudja highlighted Guyana’s legislative framework which recognises the rights of present and future generations to a healthy, clean, and sustainable environment. She scrutinised Guyana’s Environmental Protection Agency, seeking clarification on its functions and mandate to enforce strict environmental standards among all stakeholders.

The Committee member highlighted Guyana’s ratification of both the Paris Agreement and the Escazú regional agreement, focusing on the latter’s provisions for access to information, public participation, and justice regarding environmental issues in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). However, concerns were raised regarding Guyana’s exploitation of its golden oil resources, specifically the lack of consultation with indigenous populations and the environmental impact of illegal exploitation activities, including mercury poisoning in water sources.

Furthermore, Tigroudja criticized the indirect interaction between oil companies like ExxonMobil and the Guyanese people, with communication being filtered through the government. She underscored the plight of fisher folk, who lack political representation and are marginalised in decision-making processes due to their informal sector status and absence from unions.

In response to these concerns, Tigroudja questioned how Guyana will ensure the implementation of the Escazú agreement, particularly its provisions for consultation, access to information, and decision-making processes. “So in light of the aforementioned range of concerns, we would like to ask the state party to share with the committee how it concretely intangibly guarantees the implementation of the Escazu agreement,” she said. Tigroudja emphasised the need to prioritize the interests and needs of communities affected by extractive industries and their environmental impacts.

Guyana has been blessed with bauxite, timber, gold, diamonds, manganese and oil. In December 2019, ExxonMobil Guyana and its partners in the Stabroek Block commenced oil production in Guyana. Guyana has been touted as the fastest growing economy in the world as a result of oil operations in the country.

Notably, the poverty rate, the share of the population living below the U.S. equivalent of US$5.5 a day, is about 38.8 percent, among the highest in the Caribbean and Latin America (LAC), according to the United Nations Development Programme.

Moreover, this publication had reported that last week the Committee posed a question to Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Gail Teixeira, who led the Guyanese delegation before the UN body, inquiring how the wealth is being used to ensure every citizen benefits.

In her response, Minister Teixeira said, “The issue of natural wealth being shared we have reported here, the increase in allocations for health and education, the fact that in every Amerindian village in our society or Indigenous village in society, every rural village in our society, every municipality, there are schools for children at the nursery, primary and in the regions which are large, we have secondary schools where children come (from) in the interiors where dormitory is provided.”

To this end, she explained that for a country of fewer than 800,000 people, coming from a poor background, significant changes have been made in terms of free education, free health care, subsidize housing, increases in the water availability in the interior and rural areas, and electricity. Guyana’s first trillion dollar was passed in the National Assembly last month. The largest chunk of the $1.146 trillion budget was allocated to improving the country’s infrastructure: roads, bridges, sea defence and airstrips among others, with $221.4 billion allotted to this sector. For healthcare and education system, $129.8 billion and $135.2 billion were approved respectively.

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• Guyana, human, poverty, rights, UN

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