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Ar GUYANA | House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries hosts Guyana's President Irfaan Ali on Capitol Hill
GUYANA | House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries hosts Guyana's President Irfaan Ali on Capitol Hill
BROOKLYN, NY September 15, 2023 - House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries is reporting that on Thursday, last, members of the House Democratic Congressional caucus met with Guyana’s President Mohamed Irfaan Ali and a delegation from his cabinet on Capitol Hill where they discussed opportunities and challenges confronting the Republic of Guyana.
Jeffries was accompanied by Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congressman Steven Horsford of Nevada, First Vice Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congresswoman, Yvette Clarke of New York, Congresswoman Maxine Waters of California and Congresswoman Stacey Plaskett of the Virgin Islands.
Reports out of Washington described the meeting as respectful and cordial with Ali resiling from a less than complementary attitude he displayed last year in respect of Representative Jeffries, and for which he was widely condemned.
President Ali was supported by his foreign minister Hugh Todd, tourism and commerce minister, Oneidge Walrond, foreign secretary, Robert Persaud and Guyana Defense Force Chief of Staff Brigadier Omar Khan.
Reports say Congresswoman Yvette Clarke asked about the domestic situation in Guyana, to which the president responded by speaking about development projects and objectives of the government. Ali mainly forced the conversation on Guyana's role in CARICOM and how Guyana and the US can work on climate matters.
The following is a statement by House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries on the meeting.
Meeting With Guyanese President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali and a Delegation of Government Officials
On Thursday, I hosted a meeting with Guyanese President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali and a delegation of government officials from the Republic of Guyana.
Several leading congressional members with expertise in foreign affairs, finance, security and other critical issues to the Western Hemisphere and the Caribbean-American community in Brooklyn and across the United States also participated.
During the meeting we discussed several critical issues, including regional and energy security, the climate crisis and the importance of an inclusive society in Guyana that involved full economic participation and civic engagement by Guyanese-Africans and Guyanese-Indians.
We also discussed electoral reform, strengthening democratic institutions and the need to bolster access to banking and financial services in the Caribbean region.
In the next few weeks, a delegation of House Members, myself included, will meet with leaders of the Guyanese opposition party to continue our dialogue about the opportunities and challenges confronting the Republic of Guyana and other nations within the African diaspora in the Western Hemisphere.
We will continue to encourage the government and the opposition to work together to ensure that all Guyanese citizens, regardless of race or ethnicity, benefit from the economic growth underway in the South American nation.
Jeffries and several other members of Congress are scheduled to meet with delegates of the Washington Conference on Guyana, which will take place from September 27-28 at the National Press Club in Washington DC.
The conference will address what has been described by the Opposition as the apartheid policies of the PPP regime and how US policy can help achieve inclusive governance, inclusive growth, equality, equal rights and justice and sustainable development of all Guyanese, according to organizers.
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