Simons sees opportunities for cooperation with Venezuela in oil, agriculture and tourism

Simons told the Communicatie Dienst Suriname (Suriname Communication Service) on Friday, September 11, that the visit fits within Suriname’s foreign policy, which gives special attention to countries in the immediate region.

“Our neighbouring countries are very important. Venezuela is among them as well,” the president said. Rodríguez paid an official visit to Suriname at Simons’ invitation. Both heads of state held bilateral talks at the Presidential Palace.

Knowledge exchange in oil and gas sector

An important topic during the talks was the development of Suriname’s oil and gas sector. Venezuela has years of experience in the extraction and processing of oil and gas and has offered to share its knowledge with Suriname.

According to Simons, this concerns not only technical expertise and capacity, but also the lessons Venezuela has learned over the years. At the same time, she stressed that Suriname must prevent its economy from becoming too dependent on one sector.

Food security and tourism

The president also sees opportunities for cooperation in agriculture. She pointed to Venezuela’s efforts to produce more food itself.

“It is important to produce your own food so that you have food security,” Simons said.

Cooperation in the tourism sector was also discussed. One possibility is the development of multi-destination trips, in which tourists visit several countries in the region during a single trip. According to the president, Suriname can offer, among other things, its rainforest and cultural heritage.

Simons expects that from January 2027, when Suriname takes over the chairmanship of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the country will also be able to work more closely with Venezuela at regional and multilateral levels.

More attention to Spanish

The Venezuelan community in Suriname and improvements in Spanish-language education were also discussed during the talks.

According to Simons, better command of Spanish is important for Suriname’s position within South America and international organisations on the continent. She noted that Spanish is predominantly spoken within organisations such as the Organization of American States.

According to the president, Suriname is linguistically an outsider in the region because Dutch is its official language and of its strong orientation towards English. Greater knowledge of Spanish can therefore contribute to better communication and closer cooperation with other countries on the continent.