Happy Monday!

This week we cover President Chan Santokhi’s trip to New York for the UN General Assembly meeting, Suriname’s concern with rising prices, and collaborations between Suriname’s and Brazil’s oil companies.

President Chan Santokhi has returned to Suriname after completing an extensive agenda in New York.

He addressed the 79th General Assembly of the United Nations on Wednesday. In his speeches, Santokhi emphasized the need for collective responsibility to strengthen the multilateral system, that aligns with international law and global humanitarian solidarity and ensures no one is left behind.

The UN summit, which concludes on September 30, focuses on sustainable development, human dignity, climate change, economic inequality, and advancing peace in the world. While at the UN Summit, Santokhi held various bilateral meetings, including discussions with UN Secretary-General António Guterres about climate action, reforming the international financial system, and issues relevant to small island and low-lying states. He also met with the prime ministers of Aruba and Sint Maarten to discuss strengthening cooperation and sustainable development between the three. Additionally, the president spoke with potential investors, including Barclays and the Council of the Americas.

President Santokhi courted investors while at the UN Summit in New York.

During a meeting with the diaspora community in New York, President Chan Santokhi described Suriname as an attractive destination for foreign investments and business partnerships. He spoke about Suriname's economic progress, especially in the oil and gas sector, and how the government has worked to create a favorable environment for international investors. Major companies like Total Energies and Petronas are leading offshore projects in Suriname's oil fields, such as Block 58 and Block 52. These projects are boosting the country's oil and gas industry while driving broader economic development, including infrastructure improvements and opportunities for the local population.

Santokhi also called on the Surinamese diaspora in New York stating that they could contribute to sectors like agriculture and tourism. He emphasized the crucial role they can play in Suriname's economic growth, encouraging them to register businesses in Suriname and find local partners.

The president reaffirmed the government's mission to foster a pro-business environment, attract foreign investments, and promote international cooperation. He noted that Suriname offers a welcoming society, a pro-business government, an independent judiciary, a transforming banking sector, and peaceful diversity.

Suriname is concerned again as prices rise due to a rising exchange rate and customs rate.

Over the past two weeks, the customs rate for the US dollar has increased from SRD 29.46 to SRD 30.56, while the exchange rate for the euro has risen from SRD 32.14 to SRD 34.07, a jump of SRD 1.93. This jump has led to adjusted prices.

Last week, Minister of Finance and Planning Stanley Raghoebarsing stated in a press conference that there was no reason for the exchange rate to increase, citing a lack of monetary and fiscal causes. He predicted that the rate would fall, but this has not happened. With the rise in the customs rate, imported goods will become more expensive.

Inflation has continued to decline as during August prices rose by 0.3%. The General Bureau of Statistics of Suriname reported that consumer prices increased by 11.1% from August 2023 to August 2024.

In July 2024, prices had risen by 13% compared to July 2023, indicating a continued downward trend in inflation. Comparing June 2023 to the most recent month, prices rose by 16.2%. Inflation in 2023 was 32.6%, and in 2022, it was 54.6%. Based on these numbers inflation will drop year to year by quite a margin.

Suriname and Brazil’s state oil company have signed agreements to continue exploring opportunities in several different areas.

The companies want to explore fields such as oil and gas exploration and production, carbon capture and storage, renewable energy, knowledge exchange, and disaster response planning. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two allows Staatsolie to leverage Petrobras' expertise to further develop Suriname's oil, gas, and energy industry sustainably. The partnership also aims to contribute to regional energy security and the energy transition.

Annand Jagesar, Staatsolie's CEO, expressed enthusiasm for the collaboration, highlighting Petrobras' global technical reputation and its over 1,200 patents. Petrobras is one of the world's largest oil and gas producers, specializing in exploration and production, refining, energy generation, and marketing. The company is particularly so in deep and ultra-deepwater, where it is a global leader after decades of developing Brazil's offshore basins.

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