Eminent Professor and Ambassador Extraordinaire, Shamir Andrew Ally, PhD., has presented a treatise on life and family; on overcoming; on achieving; on diplomacy and statecraft and on humility. Prof. Ally, in his own inimitable style sought to define the objective in penning his book, in an aptly framed title: ‘My Tenure as Guyana’s Ambassador in Kuwait with Lessons in Diplomacy: How We Improved the Image of Guyana in the Middle East’. The title itself is as long as the book’s 406 pages, and rightly so. It is an intimate reveal of the shared “lived experiences as Guyana’s Ambassador to Kuwait” (2016-2020).
Through his writings about those experiences, Ambassador Ally shares the narrative of how he intends to inform and guide future leaders, ambassadors, and students, in the ways of the Middle East. However, to be able to do so, he has taken us to the very beginnings and foundations of his life – his childhood, his parenting and family relations, his religion and practice of it, his education, and work experiences. By showing us who he really is, his tremendous successes as an Ambassador, we immediately see, were as a result of the strong foundations that these past experiences and stimuli shaped him into being the man that represented Guyana in Kuwait and the Middle East. He was, in a word, a ‘dynamo’ – Guyana’s dynamo in the Middle East.
The book chronicles the journey of Ambassador Shamir, as he is fondly known in some close circles, from “Who Am I?”, to living and working in the United States, and being involved in the planning and execution of Cricket World Cup in 2007. Here, in the first two chapters, we are taken through various stages of Professor’s personal and professional development, as described in wonderfully simple, but refined language. There, we are better able understand and appreciate the making of Ambassador, H.E. Professor Shamir Andrew Ally, and as Alternate Governor for Guyana, of the Islamic Development Bank in Saudi Arabia.
In the five chapters that follow, the reader is taken on an exciting and intriguing journey – one filled with pride of accomplishments, breakthroughs achieved, and of setbacks and obstacles overcome. Best of all, are the photographs that are included that allow us to share the moments graphically, and picture ourselves, as invisible guests at the many events and momentous occasions that the Ambassador and his charming wife, Her Excellency, Dr. Maryann Beebe Ally, were privileged to attend and represent Guyana at. Indeed, this book should be read as a companion to the other masterpiece – ‘Friendship is the GIFT” – that was recently authored by Dr. Maryann Bebee Ally, the other half of the “WE” that Ambassador refers to in his title.
Today, Guyana continues to drink generously from the well of goodwill that Ambassador Shamir opened up for the nation, and one only hopes that his contribution will be recognized in solemn form.
This book, a treatise, is a manual that should adorn the shelves of Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Embassies and Diplomatic Missions, University Libraries, and the private collections of those who have an interest in matters of management and diplomacy in general, and the Middle East, in particular. It is use and application should be widespread for Guyana’s diplomats and those aspiring to serve in the field of diplomacy.
With an enthusiastic sense of honour, I commend its immediate acquisition and reading.
Raphael, Esq (in 2025, Dr. Raphael, Esq.) is 1 of 3 FOUNDERS for the Alliance for Change, AFC, established on 29th. October 2005, NEXT YEAR will be its 20th. Anniversary with a BOOK of Photos, Outcomes and Deliverables.
CURRENTLY:
- Principal Attorney – Chapman & Trotman, Attorneys-at-Law
- General Secretary- Alliance For Change, with 2025 General Elections Slogan “ BETTER MUST COME.”
- D. (ABD -All But Dissertation). NEW UNIVERSITY, SLOVENIA, FACULTY OF GOVERNMENT AND EUROPEAN STUDIES. Major: Ph.D. – INTERNATIONAL and DIPLOMATIC STUDIES.
TROTMAN, RAPHAEL: PUBLICATIONS
- Trotman, Raphael. “Life & Death”. Fletcher Perspectives: Spring, 2002
- International Dispute Resolution: The Guyana/Suriname Boundary Dispute Revisited (Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy – 2002)
- The “Wars of the West Indies” and the Threat of State Disintegration in Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, and Jamaica (Master’s Thesis, Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy – 2002)
- Change: Selected Writings and Speeches Of My Journey For Change, Edited by Clayton A. Hall (Isaiah Publications 2011, Library of Congress Control No. 201190046, ISBN: 978-976-8212-72-6)
- Parliament in the Republic of Guyana (Isaiah Publications, Georgetown, 2014 ISBN: 978-976-95660-0-2)
- “ From Destiny to Prosperity” ( Isaiah Publications, Georgetown, 2023 ISBN: Softcover 978-976-95660-3-3 ISBN: EBOOK 978-976-95660-4-0)
Former KUWAIT Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah passes away at 82. JANNAH. Jannat Al Firdaws.
BOOK: LEADING WITH QUESTIONS: Dr. Shamir Ally on page 205.
1 of 30 Global Leaders.
BOOK OVERVIEW
Many leaders are unaware of the amazing power of questions. Our conversations may be full of requests and demands, but all too often we are not asking for honest and informative answers, and we do not know how to listen effectively to responses. When leaders start encouraging questions from their teams, however, they begin to see amazing results. Knowing the right questions to ask–and the right way to listen–will give any leader the skills to perform well in any situation, effectively communicate a vision to the team, and achieve lasting success across the organization.
Thoroughly revised and updated, Leading with Questions will help you encourage participation and teamwork, foster outside-the-box thinking, empower others, build relationships with customers, solve problems, and more. Michael Marquardt reveals how to determine which questions will lead to solutions to even the most challenging issues. He outlines specific techniques of active listening and follow-up, and helps you understand how questions can improve the way you collaborate with individuals, teams, and organizations.
This new edition of Leading with Questions draws on interviews with thirty leaders, including eight whose stories are new to this edition. These interviews tell stories from a range of countries, including SINGAPORE, GUYANA, KOREA, and SWITZERLAND, and feature case studies from prominent firms such as DuPont, Alcoa, Novartis, and Cargill.
A NEW CHAPTER on PROBLEM-SOLVING will help you apply questions to your toughest situations as a LEADER, and a new “Questions for Reflection” section at the end of each chapter will help you bring Marquardt’s message into all of your work as a LEADER.
NOW, more than ever, Globally, LEADING with Questions IS the definitive GUIDE for becoming a stronger LEADER by identifying— and asking— the RIGHT QUESTIONS.
OPEC on 64th. Year : September 14, 1960
VIENNA: SECRETARY GENERAL of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Haitham Al-Ghais said Saturday that the establishment of OPEC on September 14, 1960, marked the beginning of a new era in the ENERGY industry and GLOBAL economic sector. This came in a joint press statement made by the Secretary General to KUNA and Kuwait TV on the occasion of the organization’s celebration of the 64th ANNIVERSARY of its ESTABLISHMENT.
OPEC’s Secretary General congratulated His Highness the Amir Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, recalling the pioneering role of Kuwait in the organization’s journey in all stages. Al-Ghais said that the organization has remained faithful and committed to the principles and values it has adopted since its establishment until today, supporting the stability of the oil market and the global energy market.
He said that the distinguished Kuwaiti presence in OPEC indicates Kuwait’s sound forward-looking vision and its awareness of the utmost importance of the energy industry in the global economy. On this occasion, Al-Ghais extended his congratulations and gratitude to all member states, including heads of state, kings, heads of government, and ministers, for their support for OPEC and its activities.
He also praised the efforts made by former OPEC secretaries general over the past decades, which has made OPEC gain a prestigious position and trust at the global level. He said that the 64th anniversary of OPEC’s establishment is an ideal opportunity to focus on the role of the organization and its progress over the past decades. He added that it is also an opportunity to look forward to its prosperous future under the continuous support of the member states and the clarity of vision in the organization’s goals despite all the challenges facing the energy and oil markets in general.
OPEC was founded in September 1960 in the IRAQI capital, Baghdad, following an extraordinary meeting of senior officials representing the FIVE FOUNDING COUNTRIES of the organization: Dr Fuad Rouhani of IRAN, Dr Tala’at Al-Shaibani of IRAQ, Ahmad Sayed Omar of KUWAIT, Abdullah Al-Tariki of SAUDI ARABIA, and Dr Juan Pablo Perez Alfonzo of VENEZUELA. — KUNA
CURRENTLY 12 countries are in OPEC, Algeria, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. These countries the ORIGINAL FIVE FOUNDING MEMBERS or joined later, with the MOST RECENT ADDITION being EQUATORIAL GUINEA in 2017.
https://kuwaittimes.com/article/19013/kuwait/other-news/opecs-launch-64-years-ago-marked-new-era/
Onward & Upward towards, One People, One Nation, One Destiny.
