Above: former Guyanese President Bharrat Jagdeo, Tianjin’s Zhang Gaoli and President Donald Ramotar

By the Caribbean Journal staff

The Chinese municipality of Tianjain says it is ready to build economic relations with Guyana.

Tianjin, a major port and communications hub in China, has a population of 14 million, occupying 11,000 square kilometers — along with rich natural resources, from gold to natural gas.

Zhang Gaoli, who is the secretary of the Communist Party in Tianjin, made the pitch in Georgetown to a group including President Donald Ramotar, former President Bharrat Jagdeo and Prime Minister Samuel Hinds.

The two countries have substantially increased their cooperation in recent years, most recently with China’s contribution to Guyana’s One Laptop Per Family programme.

The meetings between Chinese and Guyanese officials focused on deepening inter-governmental relations and cooperation in a number of fields.

“The vibrancy in our relations has also manifested itself into several exchanges which we have had at the government, military and party levels,” Ramotar said.

Chinese officials ware also scheduled to make visits to the Demerara Distillers Limited, the Cheddi Jagan Research Centre and Umana Yana, among others.

Guyana was the first English-speaking Caribbean country to establish bilateral ties with China.

Zhang said he regarded Guyana as a country with “rich resources.”