Guyana

Co-operative Republic of Guyana

The South American nation of Guyana is officially named the Co-operative Republic of Guyana. Originally settled by the Dutch in 1616, Great Britain assumed control of three separate contiguous colonies in 1831 and named them British Guiana. The agricultural economy of this era was largely supported by African slaves and indentured laborers from Europe and Asia, the descendants of whom make up a significant portion of the population in Guyana today. The nation became independent from Britain in 1966, but remains a member of the British Commonwealth.

The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) consists of the Ground Forces, Coast Guard and a small Air Corps.

• Early elements of the GDF adopted a tiger stripe pattern of undetermined origins, having unique elements that do not appear to be based on the drawings developed during the Vietnam War. This appears to have been adopted in the mid to late 1970s, although many elements of the GDF simply wore solid green fatigues during this period.

• Since the 1990s, the standard camouflage uniform of the GDF Ground Forces and Coast Guard has been a tiger stripe pattern with a distinctive bright green tone. It is worth noting that the shapes remained the same as the earlier tiger pattern from the 1970s, and only the coloration changed.