Relations with Australia strengthened; President accredits new High Commissioner

Relations between Guyana were today further concretized when President David Granger accredited His Excellency, John Pilbeam as the new non-resident High Commissioner of the Commonwealth of Australia to Guyana.

The new High Commissioner is based in Trinidad and Tobago.

Mr. Pilbeam reminded of the 40 years of cordial diplomatic relations the two nations have shared.

The new ambassador said sport, particularly cricket, is the bedrock of the relations between Guyana and Australia.

He noted that “Guyana is the first place in which I have presented credentials outside of Port of Spain and I have to admit that the plans of the Australian cricket team to visit for a week in June, play a large part in that decision. A large number of Australian cricket fans will also be visiting Guyana then and we need to prepare with your Government for that.

Guyana has benefited significantly from its relations with Australia, particularly in the areas of capacity building, scholarships and joint-aid programmes.

President David Granger expressed similar sentiments, noting that diplomatic relations have deepened Guyana’s membership in the Commonwealth of Nations. He also expressed gratitude for the assistance Australia has offered over the years.

“Guyana looks forward to continuing to work with Australia to finding solution to the problems of small states and particularly, to the security concerns of small states,” the Head of State said.

It is anticipated that there will be increased collaboration between the two countries at the multilateral level; pointing out that there is much scope for cooperation, particularly within the context of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the 2015 Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Accelerated Modalities of Action also called the Samoa Pathway, a release from the Ministry of the Presidency stated.