Guyana: Guyana Achieves 63.9% ICAO Compliance Rating

Guyana has recorded a compliance rating of 63.9% in the most recent audit conducted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). Officials from the Guyana Civil Aviation Organisation (GCAA) announced this development, indicating that efforts are underway to enhance this score beyond the current rating.

Aviation Minister Deodat Indar highlighted that this rating represents the highest compliance in the Latin American region from the 2024 audit. However, he noted that the civil aviation sector faced challenges in the implementation of laws due to the timing of new legislation that was enacted shortly before the audit took place.

Minister Indar explained, “We had the Civil Aviation Act reviewed, and a lot changed and so on. But what we suffered from in the audit is post-legislation activity. The legislation was passed very close to the audit, and when the auditor checked for implementation, there was not enough evidence for them to assess, resulting in a lower score in the regulatory part of the audit.”

Despite this setback, Guyana achieved high scores in several areas, including over 90% in regulations and 80.14% in security. Director General of the GCAA, Retired Lt. Col. Egbert Field, mentioned that inspectors were undergoing on-the-job training during the audit period.

Field expressed confidence that the compliance score could be improved following the implementation of a corrective action plan. He stated that Guyana intends to invite the ICAO Coordinated Validation Mission (ICVM) next year for a follow-up inspection, a move that is not commonly made by other states.

He also noted that he receives bi-weekly status reports from a GCAA officer responsible for overseeing the corrective actions. The ICAO audit was based on over 700 questions across eight thematic areas, including laws, regulations, enforcement, filing systems, competence, and certification.

Source: demerarawaves.com