Petroleum exploration is to be among the agenda items when the national border commissions of Guyana and Suriname begin their meeting today in Paramaribo.

The Guyana-Suriname Cooperation Council, which ended its two-day meeting yesterday in the Surinamese capital, referred the issue to the border commissions.

Foreign Minister, Rudy Insanally who headed the delegation to the Cooperation Council meeting, will head the Guyana team at today's meeting. The other members of that team are Attorney General, Doodnauth Singh SC; Ambassador Rudy Collins; Head of the Frontiers Department, Keith George; Senior Legal Adviser Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Rosemary Cadogan; and legal consultant, Dr Barton Scotland.

According to the agreed minutes of the meeting, the border commissions' meeting is to provide options for cooperation in the area of oil exploration to presidents Bharrat Jagdeo and Ronald Venetiaan when the former visits Suriname at month end. Oil exploration is the key indicator of the state of ties between the two countries following Suriname's armed eviction of an oil rig from Guyana's waters in June 2000. The move soured ties between the two countries and Guyana has been pressing for a speedy resolution.

Other areas in which the two sides agreed on concrete steps are:

* the provision of technical assistance to the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) by the Surinamese oil exploration company Staatsolie in areas to be identified;

* the preparation of "a draft Mutual Legal Agreement and Maritime law Enforcement Agreement for consideration by the council;

* consideration of "the establishment of a Joint Security programme and a Working Group on Trans-boundary Crime;"

* the inclusion of data collection and mapping, which are critical to sustainable fisheries management to be included in a comprehensive fisheries agreement to address technical cooperation; aquaculture; research and general information exchange;

* the establishment of an Expert Group to discuss issues and focus on follow-up implications;

* reconvening of the meetings of the Border Health Commission to facilitate the sharing of information on communicable diseases and the establishment of points of contact between the health authorities of the two countries;

* the intensification of cooperation among customs authorities and of closer collaboration between customs and immigration officials;

* the exchange of information between agencies involved in helping small and medium sized entities;

* the sharing of information on project ideas/pre-feasibility studies to facilitate investors in both countries;

* the expansion and intensification of cooperation in the rice sector including all activities from cultivation to marketing especially the exchange of ideas and contacts aimed at developing strategies for maintaining sufficient access to the European rice market and maximizing access to the CARICOM rice market and the sharing of information on best practices;

* the joint promotion of eco-tourism products of the two countries at international fairs;

* the revival of the Guianas Trail Project;

* the initiation of discussions on the development of a transport network to link with those of Brazil and Venezuela in the context of the Infrastructure Integration Initiative for South America.

The minutes also said that Guyana had committed its full support to Suriname hosting CARIFESTA 2003 and the need was emphasized for policymakers to be involved in the organisation of the Inter-Guiana Games.

The other members of the delegation to the Cooperation Council meeting in addition to Insanally and George were Guyana's ambassador to Suriname, Karshanjee Arjun; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Fisheries, Crops and Livestock, Bowhan Balkarran; Manager, Petroleum Division, Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, Newell Dennison; and First Secretary, Guyana Embassy, Suriname, Arlington Bancroft.

The agenda for the meeting was agreed during meetings between Insanally and his Surinamese counterpart, Marie Levens, who visited Guyana earlier this month.

The objective of the reconvened Cooperation Council meeting was to create a framework of general agreements of cooperation in which expert groups would meet according to a specified timetable with the emphasis on those areas where the cooperation could begin almost immediately.

At the joint press conference during Levens' visit, the two ministers said that the idea was to create an enabling environment to build trust and confidence as a prelude to greater cooperation.