No matter the scale of Guyana’s oil and gas developments, it will not trump the protection of the environment, says lead climate negotiator for the country, Dr Pradeepa Bholanath.
Speaking on the June 14th episode of the Starting Point Podcast, Dr Bholanath said Guyana’s rapid oil and gas expansion has been guided by a blueprint that outlines robust sector management and how revenues should be used to support long-term growth.
“I think in many ways, when we think about how a country’s development should be shaped, it needs to be strategic, it needs to be intentional and it needs to be guided by a blueprint for that development and this is precisely what Guyana has done,” Dr Bholanath said.
She explained that Guyana established such a framework through its Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), which outlines how traditional and emerging sectors of the economy can be developed while advancing environmental objectives.
According to Dr Bholanath, revenues generated from oil production are being channelled into areas such as health, education and climate resilience. Among the priorities, she pointed to efforts to strengthen food security and improve the resilience of agriculture to climate change.
“We also outlined ways in which the investments that come from the resources from the oil and gas sector would circle back to the diversifying of the economy,” she said.
Dr Bholanath argued that the LCDS, therefore, serves as the overarching guide for the nation’s economic performance.
“And that, I think, in many ways has been the key to our success…,” she said.
The LCDS is Guyana’s national development framework for using revenues from natural resources while maintaining environmental protection and climate objectives. The current LCDS 2030 identifies investments in renewable energy, climate adaptation, biodiversity conservation, sustainable forestry, agriculture and infrastructure among its priorities.
The strategy has become a central pillar of the government’s argument that oil production and climate action can advance simultaneously. Guyana is one of the world’s fastest-growing oil producers, with offshore output exceeding 900,000 barrels per day, while also maintaining more than 85% forest cover and one of the lowest deforestation rates globally.