Guyana is a parliamentary republic in which the President of Guyana is both head of state and head of government. Executive power is exercised by the President,advised by a cabinet. Legislative power is vested in both the President and the National Assembly of Guyana. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.
After independence in 1966,Guyana sought an influential role in international affairs,particularly among developing countries and non-aligned nations. It served twice on the UN Security Council. Former Vice President,Deputy Prime Minister,and Attorney General Mohamed Shahabuddeen served a 9-year term on the International Court of Justice (1987–96). In June 2023,Guyana was elected as a non-permanent member to the UN Security Council. The country will serve on the council for a period of two years,beginning in January 2024.
The history of Guyana begins about 35,000 years ago with the arrival of humans coming from Eurasia. These migrants became the Carib and Arawak tribes,who met Alonso de Ojeda's first expedition from Spain in 1499 at the Essequibo River. In the ensuing colonial era,Guyana's government was defined by the successive policies of the French,Dutch,and British settlers. During the colonial period,Guyana's economy was focused on plantation agriculture,which initially depended on slave labor. Guyana saw major slave rebellions in 1763 and 1823. Following the Slavery Abolition Act 1833,800,000 enslaved Africans in the Caribbean and South Africa were freed,resulting in plantations contracting indentured workers,mainly from India. Eventually,these Indians joined forces with Afro-Guyanese to demand equal rights in government and society. After the Second World War,the British Empire pursued policy decolonization of its overseas territories,with independence granted to British Guiana on May 26,1966. Following independence,Forbes Burnham rose to power,quickly becoming an authoritarian leader,pledging to bring socialism to Guyana. His power began to weaken following international attention brought to Guyana in wake of the Jonestown mass murder suicide in 1978.
Bharrat Jagdeo is a Guyanese politician who has been serving as Vice President of Guyana since 2020,in the administration of President Irfaan Ali. He had previously also held the office from 1997 until 1999,during the presidency of Janet Jagan. Jagdeo subsequently served as the President of Guyana from 11 August 1999 to 3 December 2011. He also holds a number of global leadership positions in the areas of sustainable development,green growth and climate change.
Samuel Archibald Anthony Hinds is a Guyanese politician who was Prime Minister of Guyana almost continuously from 1992 to 2015. He also briefly served as President of Guyana in 1997. He was awarded Guyana's highest national award,the Order of Excellence (O.E.) in 2011.
Samuel Rudolph Insanally was a Guyanese diplomat. He was Guyana's Permanent Representative to the United Nations from 1987 onwards and was Minister of Minister of Foreign Affairs of Guyana from 2001 to 2008.
Janet Rosenberg Jagan was an American-born Guyanese politician who served as the President of Guyana,serving from December 19,1997,to August 11,1999. She was the first female president of Guyana. She previously served as the first female Prime Minister of Guyana from March 17,1997,to December 19,1997. The wife of Cheddi Jagan,whom she succeeded as president,she was awarded Guyana's highest national award,the Order of Excellence,in 1993,and the UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Gold Medal for Women's Rights in 1998.
The People's Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) is a major political party in Guyana. As of 2020,the party holds 33 of the 65 seats in the National Assembly and forms the government. It has been the ruling party in the past as well,most recently between 1992 and 2015. In Guyana's ethnically divided political landscape,the PPP/C is a multi-ethnic organization with its base of support from the Indo-Guyanese people.
Donald Rabindranauth Ramotar is a Guyanese politician who was President of Guyana from 2011 to 2015. He was also the General Secretary of the People's Progressive Party (PPP) from 1997 to 2013.
Nabil Elaraby was an Egyptian politician and diplomat who was the 7th Secretary General of the Arab League from 1 July 2011 to 3 July 2016. Elaraby also had roles in the United Nations,holding positions at the United Nations Institute for Training and Research and serving as a Permanent Representative to the United Nations.
Moses Veerasammy Nagamootoo is a Guyanese politician,writer and novelist who served as the Prime Minister of Guyana under former President David A. Granger from May 2015 to August 2020.
Clement James Rohee is a Guyanese politician who has been General Secretary of the People's Progressive Party (PPP) since 2013. Under the PPP government,he served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1992 to 2001,Minister of Foreign Trade from 2001 to 2006,and Minister of Home Affairs from 2006 to 2015.
The 2010 South American summit,took place in Georgetown,Guyana on November 26,2010. Eight heads of state and four foreign ministers of the Union of South American Nations attended the summit. During the summit,the leaders signed an additional protocol to the Constitutive Treaty,adding a democratic clause to the charter of the organization. The Georgetown summit ended with the Ecuadorian president handing the UNASUR pro-tempore presidency for the next twelve months to his Guyanese counterpart,Bharrat Jagdeo.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation is the government ministry of Guyana responsible for directing the nation's external relations and the operations of its international diplomatic missions. Hugh Todd has directed the ministry as Minister of Foreign Affairs since August 2020. The ministry is located in the capital city,Georgetown.
Stewartville is a village district in Guyana on the Atlantic coast of West Demerara,just east of the mouth of the Essequibo River. There are four sections in the village:Stewartville Housing Scheme,Sarah Lodge,Stewartville Old Road and Stewartville Sea View.
Vice presidents of Guyana is a political position in Guyana. The Prime Minister of Guyana serves as the First Vice President and acts as the constitutional successor for the President of Guyana in case of a vacancy. Historically,other members of the cabinet have also been appointed as Vice Presidents,who can perform the functions of the President. Vice presidency was created in October 1980 when the executive presidency was created.
Snap general elections were held in Guyana on 2 March 2020. They were called early after the government of President David A. Granger lost a vote of no confidence by a margin of 33–32 on 21 December 2018,the government having held a one-seat majority since the 2015 elections. However,one of its own MPs,Charrandas Persaud of the Alliance for Change (AFC),voted with the opposition. Granger announced on 25 September 2019 that the elections would be held on 2 March 2020.
Hugh Hilton Todd is a Guyanese politician who serves as Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Guyana since 2020.
Pauline Rose Ann Campbell-Sukhai is a Guyanese politician. She is the current Minister of Amerindian Affairs in Guyana. She was appointed Minister on August 5,2020,by President Irfaan Ali. She had previously served in that position from January 4,2008 to May 15,2015.
Yvonne Fredericks-Pearson is a Guyanese politician. She has been a member of the National Assembly since 2015. She served as Toshao of Mainstay/Whyaka from 1994 to 2012.
Guyanese 