The government is ready to finalise negotiations with international airlines interested in using Terminal 2 at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) as their global hub, President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali announced on Tuesday.

President Ali made the announcement at the opening of the 3rd Global Regional Safety Oversight Organizations and Regional Accident and Investigation Organization Forum for Aviation Safety at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC).

The event is a two-day aviation safety summit hosted by Guyana in partnership with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). Civil aviation authorities from about 60 countries are attending.

“We are ready to finalise those negotiations. So I make that very clear. We have to ensure that we have a major player utilising Terminal 2 as the hub, as their hub, our hub,” the president said.

He said the Ministry of Public Utilities and Aviation is mandated to negotiate with major carriers interested in connecting West Africa and South America to the Caribbean through Guyana.

The government is also working with international partners on security systems to support the hub.

President Ali also said Guyana is looking for an international partner to help it become a global training centre for aviation.

The training would cover pilots, maintenance, safety, and security, and the government would provide the infrastructure.

The plan was linked to a worldwide shortage of aviation workers, which the president said is a safety risk.

Currently, aviation and nursing are the two sectors where the supply falls furthest short of demand.

The two-day conference is themed “Optimising Resources through Coordination and Cooperation” and is the first global aviation event of its kind hosted in Guyana.

“If we don’t have enough pilots and pilots are not having the required rest…if we don’t have enough assets and assets are stretched in terms of utilisation, all of this has an impact on safety,” he explained.

President Ali called for a regional and global analysis of how much investment is needed to close the gap and where it will come from.

He noted that the ten-point aviation plan he unveiled earlier this year includes upgrading air traffic management and navigation systems and modernising regulatory standards.

The president also proposed adding artificial intelligence to the conference agenda. He called on ICAO and partner organisations to set up an expert group to develop a shared AI strategy for aviation safety, so no country is left behind as the technology spreads.

He also urged regional authorities to form a team to help Caribbean airports close gaps identified in international safety audits. He said a shortfall at one airport affects the whole region.

Meanwhile, Minister of Public Utilities and Aviation Deodat Indar also delivered remarks. He said the conference would examine the aviation ecosystem.

He described it as an opportunity for countries of various capacities to learn from each other.

“Aviation safety is not something to compromise with,” the minister said.

He reiterated Guyana’s plan to seek a seat on the ICAO Council in 2028. He also noted that the number of airlines and aviation companies operating in Guyana has grown from four in 2020 to 16.

Also delivering remarks were Director General of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret’d) Egbert Field; Director of ICAO’s Air Navigation Bureau, Michele Merkle; European Union Ambassador to Guyana, Suriname and CARICOM, Luca Pierantoni; Chairman of the Private Sector Commission, Captain Gerry Gouveia Jr; Inter-American Development Bank Country Representative, Lorena Solorzano; and Acting Division Chief of the Caribbean Development Bank’s Economic Infrastructure Division, William Ashby. ICAO Secretary General Juan Carlos Salazar and EASA Executive Director Florian Guillermet delivered video remarks.

The two-day conference is themed “Optimising Resources through Coordination and Cooperation” and is the first global aviation event of its kind hosted in Guyana.