Guyana is to get a US$15-million drawdown from the Caribbean Petroleum Fund (CPF) that President Bharrat Jagdeo says will be used to shore up policyholders of Colonial Life Insurance Company (CLICO).

Jagdeo said he lobbied regional leaders during the Fifth Summit of the Americas on behalf of the policyholders of CLICO Guyana, and that some of the funds would shore up the company's asset base.

"Before I left Guyana, I said at the press conference that they were putting US$50 million from the Petroleum Fund into a special facility to deal with OECS (Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States) countries that had problems with British American Insurance Company, because they have some issues which are related to the CL Financial Group.

"I said, I thought it's unfair - this is a regional problem and requires a regional solution. I argued for an additional US$15 million to come from that fund and to come to Guyana, and they have agreed that US$15 million will come from the Petroleum Fund to Guyana to assist with CLICO," Jagdeo said.

Last month, CLICO Guyana was declared insolvent, with its liabilities exceeding its assets by nearly $2 billion.

"I had an agreement among the heads of governments of CARICOM that we will get an additional US$15 million to help offset some of these problems," said the Guyanese president.

"If we do all the things that I had spoken about at the press conference, I could conceivably see a time when we would not have to use a cent of taxpayers' money to deal with CLICO."

- CMC