By adopting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Guyana has agreed its citizens will benefit from those basic rights that every person, regardless of race, religion, gender, ethnicity, age or wealth, has the right to receive and enjoy. Under the Guyana Constitution it is noted that “the interpretation of the fundamental rights provisions in this constitution a court shall pay due regard to international law, international conventions and charters bearing on human rights.”

The full access to and the enjoyment of human rights is a key objective of Guyana’s National Development Strategy (NDS). The NDS is a policy framework structured around priority objectives of the country, including poverty alleviation, geographical unity and the equitable distribution of economic activity. These goals also form the basis of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) - the document increasingly used to focus Guyana’s partners’ and donors’ contributions on the priorities of the country.