VZCZCXRO2213
RR RUEHGR
DE RUEHGE #0147 0391729
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 081729Z FEB 07
FM AMEMBASSY GEORGETOWN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4758
INFO RUCNCOM/EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE
RUEAHLC/HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHINGTON DC
RUMIAAA/HQ USSOUTHCOM J2 MIAMI FL
RHMFIUU/TSA HQ WASHINGTON DC
RHMCSUU/FAA NATIONAL HQ WASHINGTON DC
RHMCSUU/FAA MIAMI ARTCC MIAMI FL
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORPORATION WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS GEORGETOWN 000147 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
CA/FPP - LARA HARRIS 
INL/HSTC - MARC GORELICK 
DHS - Mohamed Yousuf/JFK 
SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CVIS SNAR SMIG ASEC KFRD KCRM GY
SUBJECT: Guyana Finally Moves Towards Machine Readable Passports 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: After more than ten years of delays, Guyana will 
finally begin issuing machine-readable passports (MRPs) this summer. 
After having bid on the project eleven years ago, Canadian Bank Note 
(CBN) was awarded the contract in December 2006. The company says 
that they will be ready to begin issuing MRPs within six months 
although there are several issues still to be resolved with the GOG. 
Although CBN believes that the GOG will be minimally ready to begin 
issuing the MRPs in the near future, a senior company representative 
expressed frustration with his interaction with GOG. END SUMMARY 
 
¶2. (SBU) A Senior Regional Director with CBN contacted the embassy 
to offer a briefing on the upcoming release of the Guyanese CBP. The 
representative told RSO and Consular Chief that he had been dealing 
with the GOG for eleven years, since CBN first placed their bid on 
the project. He stated that the company, which has handled MRP 
contracts in countries throughout Caricom, with the exception of the 
Bahamas and Barbados, had almost given up on the GOG ever deciding 
to award the MRP contract. Out of the blue, the GOG informed the 
company in December that they had won the bid. The GOG also made a 
sizeable down payment on the contract, larger, in fact, than the 
company anticipated and larger than some other countries in the 
region have made. 
 
¶3. (SBU) While pleased to have been finally awarded the contract, 
CBN has experienced frustration in working with the GOG. When 
awarded the contract, CBN informed the GOG that they should 
immediately begin a press campaign to inform the public that the 
non-MRPs would be invalid as of December 28, 2009, to be ICAO 
compliant. With the large numbers of Guyanese living abroad, getting 
the word out that they will need to apply for new passports in the 
next two years will be a significant undertaking. To date, the GOG 
has made no plans to educate the public on the issue. CBN also 
reported that the GOG budget for MRP implementation and issuance was 
well below that of other CARICOM countries, which translates into 
less secure passports. The MRPs will have several security features, 
including the biodata and photo being printed on the first page of 
the passport rather than the inside cover, but will have a less 
secure laminate than some other CARICOM MRPs and no biometric 
features. Although CBN has discussed with the GOG the need to raise 
the cost of a passport to at least a cost-recovery level, the GOG 
remains firm in their belief that every individual has the right to 
a passport. (NOTE: A Guyanese passport currently costs US$5. With 
such a low fee, Guyanese carry their passport as a form of 
identification. Post frequently sees applicants who have obtained 
new passports to cover up previous visa refusals, overstays in the 
US, name changes, and other information they do not want revealed. 
END NOTE) 
 
¶4. (SBU) The Guyanese Immigration Office is the subject of frequent 
scandals and dismissals. Less than a year ago, the Director 
Immigration was transferred after 100 blank Guyanese passports went 
missing from the Immigration Office. CBN's contract with the GOG 
includes an extensive accountability feature, electronically 
tracking passport books and applications throughout processing. 
However, passport security is only as good as the civil documents 
used to confirm identity and every aspect of Guyana's civil registry 
and documents is exploited by Guyanese who are attempting to assume 
or conceal an identity. CBN stated that they had attempted to 
include a review and upgrade of the civil registry as part of the 
MRP package, but GOG was not interested. The current Immigration 
Office building is an old, wooden structure with inadequate air 
conditioning and electrical wiring. CBN has made upgrading the 
building a priority for the MRP installation but has gotten only 
minimal commitments from the GOG to do their share. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Part of the MRP plan is to connect immigration at the 
international airport to integrated watchlists, including Interpol. 
(NOTE: Currently, immigration at the airport has only a paper 
watchlist, which is not kept at the immigration booths, and it, 
therefore, rarely checked. END NOTE) If controls are instituted to 
ensure that officials actually check the database, the watchlist 
will obviously aid Guyanese border security. CBN noted that one of 
the GOG's initial requests was that CBN install MRP scanners at 
special booths at the airport prior to CWC. While CBN complied, they 
noted that the scanners are for show only, since they do not connect 
to anything. CBN has offered to train the Consular Section on the 
MRP's security features once production is underway. 
 
ROBINSON