UK security reform expert arrives

United Kingdom security expert Lt Col. (Rtd) Russell Combe is in Guyana to work on the Security Sector Reform Action Plan (SSRAP) in collaboration with the Ministry of Public Security and the Guyana Police Force, Director of Public Information Imran Khan has said.

Combe, who Stabroek News understands will be stationed in Guyana for at least a year, met with Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo on Monday at his office, where he was assured of the coalition government’s “full cooperation in working collaboratively with all stakeholders to improve Guyana’s security sector.”

Late last year, the Ministry of the Presidency had announced that a security advisor from the UK was expected in Guyana to assist the country with security reforms.

The ministry’s statement had said that the expert would be working closely with the administration on the implementation of the SSRAP.

A previous US$4.7 million SSRAP project collapsed in 2009 following differences between the then PPP/C government and London. In June last year, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the UK’s Foreign & Commonwealth Office James Duddridge had told reporters that he would have presented a document on security reform to government for its consideration. He had explained that it entailed “a piece of analysis around the current state of the security sector and what could the potential action plan be taking forward different elements of security sector reform and specifically how the UK government could assist in that action plan.”

Soon after winning the election, President David Granger had revealed that government had approached the British to have the rejected SSRAP back on the cards in the wake of the country’s ongoing battle with crime.