Irfan Ali was again elected President of Guyana, what is his India connection?

Mohammad Irfan Ali has been re -elected as the President of Guyana. The ruling People’s Progressive Party (PPP) chief, 45 -year -old Ali first came to power in 2020. His PPP got more than double votes from his nearest rival and it seems that his vote percentage has increased since then. Ali’s main rival leftist Opposition was Azruddin Mohammed, Obre Norton of the Opposition People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), who had established his party V Invest in the Nation (WIN) a few months ago. Meanwhile, the opposition party, partnership for National Unity (APNU), was far behind for a long time.

The South American country Guyana is the largest crude oil reserved country in the world, but the rate of poverty here is the highest in Latin America. According to the 2024 report by the Inter-American Development Bank, 55% of the population is living in poverty despite the budget being quadruple from oil production. The opposition has questioned the misuse of government resources in the election process. At the same time, according to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, there are about 3,20,000 people of Indian origin in Guyana.

Ali is an urban planner and economist. He was born on April 25, 1980 in Lyonora, a Muslim, located on the west coast of Demerra. He first studied in Leonora Nursery and Primary Schools, then in Cornelia Ida Primary School. Ali completed his secondary education from St. Stanisloss College, Georgetown. He has several degrees, including a doctorate in urban and regional planning from the University of West Indies.

Ali’s family came to Guyana as Girmitia workers from India in the 19th century. In 2023, he was awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman – which is the highest honor for the diaspora. Ali first came to power in 2020 after a five -month controversial deadlock over the counting of votes. Since then, he has led one of the world’s fastest growing economies. Ali now has a tough challenge of reconstruction of a country that has the most certified crude oil reserves in the world, but also one of the highest poverty level countries in Latin America. According to a 2024 report by the Inter-American Development Bank, 58 percent of Guyani residents are living in poverty, while the boost in oil production since the start of production in 2019 has quadruped the state budget to $ 6.7 billion. The discovery was made in 2015 after the discovery of huge crude oil reserves on the coast of Guyana by the oil sector giant Exonmobil.