Speaking at the official launch of the new Oil and Gas Corner at the New Amsterdam National Library in Region Six, Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance Dr. Ashni Singh emphasised that the new library corner has the potential to educate and inspire young people about the oil and gas sector.
Minister Singh also reiterated the government’s commitment to expanding access to knowledge, strengthening public education, and ensuring that citizens, especially students, are equipped with a clear understanding of Guyana’s oil and gas sector.
“Today’s launching of this corner, though it might appear on the surface to be a modest initiative, showcases the work that we are doing together and has the potential to be the first point of direct contact between young Guyanese people and the oil and gas industry to see what an FPSO looks like as well as your seabed and subsea operation,” Minister Singh said as he expressed the hope that more such corners are set up.
He also expressed gratitude to the President and team at ExxonMobil Guyana Limited for their partnership, and thanked the library team for their work in bringing the vision to life.
Dr. Singh also encouraged young people to explore the possibilities of the oil and gas industry and to take full advantage of the resources available at the library. The library stems from a partnership between the government and ExxonMobil.
Further encouraging young Guyanese to get into the industry and take up all the educational opportunities being made available by government such as to study at places such at the University of Guyana and the Guyana Technical Training College at Port Mourant, Dr. Singh added that ‘and so as modest as it is it represents an extremely important instalment in our rollout of initiatives as we seek to bring the oil and gas industry closer to the Guyanese people, to inform them of the vastness of possibilities that exist for them and to put them potentially on a path that will see them playing a role because we want as many Guyanese people as possible to be working in the industry’.
President of ExxonMobil Guyana, Alistair Routledge, who also delivered remarks, explained that the project aimed to bring to life what is done in the industry so that every person in Guyana can see and educate communities about what is happening offshore.
“It is what I expect to see in libraries like this, the bringing to life what we do, and our passion for what we do and making sure what we do is done safe so I am really excited to be here,” he added as he thanked Government, the National Library of New Amsterdam and the Region for their involvement in pulling the project together.
The new corner features a replica of the One Guyana FPSO, along with educational materials designed to make complex national developments more accessible within a public learning space.
This initiative is expected to be replicated across several branch libraries, including the National Library in Georgetown. Also in attendance at the launch today was the Regional Executive Officer (REO) of Region Six, Narindra Persaud.
