President of Guyana Mohamed Irfaan Ali, who is on a seven-day visit to India, met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday and expressed interest in looking at different models adopted by India in building the economy.


“India has been leading the way on technology, renewable energy, the soil movement, sustainable development, and I'm just very keen on looking at the different models that India would have utilized in building its economy,” said Ali, according to the news agency ANI. President Irfaan Ali attended the inaugural session of the 17th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas at Indore on Monday as the chief guest.


“The meeting was fantastic. PM Modi is fully aware of the development of Guyana. We had discussions on how we can broaden our health & education services to ensure that the people of Guyana have the best possible access to this,” said Guyana's President after meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.


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The President also discussed bilateral cooperation on the military side as the country aims to modernize its defence and police force. “Another important issue is capacity building, human resource training, developing & strengthening our human resource base,”, the President added.


"Development of technology, medical research & manufacturing vaccines benefitted the world. India plays a key role in global transformation whether it's human resources or cost-effective manufacturing of essential vaccines. India is at the forefront in all of this," said Guyana President.


The 17th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas will be held in Indore from January 8 to 10. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will formally inaugurate the conclave on January 9, Ausaf Sayeed, Secretary (Overseas Indian Affairs) in the MEA said.


Modi on Monday held separate bilateral talks with Surinamese President Chandrikapersad Santokhi and Guyana President Mohamed Irfaan Ali on the sidelines of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD), the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.


As per the official data, Guyana has 40 per cent Indian origin people while the percentage in Surinam is around 27.