Improving the country’s transportation network

Mar 26, 2014 Editorial

In our quest for development, every administration has stressed the remarkable potential that inheres in our nation because of the plethora of resources with which we have been endowed within our eighty-three thousand square miles of continental real estate. Yet, even as we rush towards a half a century of Independence, that potential still by and large remains untapped.
One of the prime reasons why we have been unable to unlock that potential is that we have not broken out of the coastal enclave carved out by the colonial powers, which had made us into a poor replica of the other colonies in the Caribbean – without the captivating beaches.
So here we are with one of the lowest population densities in the world overall, yet ninety percent of our three quarter of a million population are packed like sardines in an area of some two hundred square miles.
To declare that we have to open up the country as quickly as possible is to state the obvious: there will be no sustainable development of a magnitude that will catapult us into the list of developed countries unless we have easier access to the potential that is locked away in the interior of our country.
One of the long-recognised threshold components of that easier access has been a highway – a properly constructed one – from the coast to the Brazilian border.
There have been recent discussions between the governments of Guyana and Brazil, at the highest level, on the modalities to construct that highway. Many feasibility plans were conducted in years gone by, but most never saw the light of day. The latest exchanges between the neighbouring territories to significantly upgrade the link seem to have been a lot more progressive.
In the past, the objection that was reflexively raised was whether such a highway is “economically” viable: meaning whether the economic returns from the highway can justify the sure-to-be enormous construction cost. But to focus only on the immediate economic benefits of opening up our interior is to miss what it has meant for our developmental thrust not to have accomplished this up to now. We believe that the economists have a term for it – missed opportunity costs.
For example, we have been getting into all sorts of contortions to deliver running water and telephones through solar power etc by accepting that the transportation links to our interior was insurmountable.
The Finance Minister announced in his latest budget speech that one billion dollars has been allocated to be expended on rehabilitating critical interior roads, including the Linden to Lethem road.
He emphasised that, “access to our hinterland communities remains absolutely critical to the wellbeing of our more remote communities as well as to the economy of our country”. So we seem to be heading in the right direction.
Every developed country that was blessed by a large landmass, very early on in its journey out of poverty, had to open up their lands – whether through railroads or highways.
There is no alternative. We have to take the bull by the horns and commit to the highway to Brazil – especially given the fact that the Takutu has been bridged almost five years now.
The funding can come from several sources, including the Brazilians, that have continually signalled interests. But we have to ensure that our overall national interests are protected. Not something to be overlooked, given recent developments.
But the road to Brazil is only one aspect of the need to look at our overall transportation needs within our strategy of sustainable growth.
The Berbice Bridge is said to have given a fillip to east-west trade within our country but the potential for a deep-water port on Crab Island or in that vicinity suggests that the road from Brazil through Lethem must continue onto Berbice to take advantage of the larger ships that can be accommodated there.
The present Linden-Georgetown Highway can handle some of the freight to Port Georgetown – even though congestion problems will have to be confronted.
In addition to the synergies obtained by the inevitable closer linkages to the Northern Brazil economy, overseas markets are indispensable for our own production possibilities from our interior – whether in agriculture or forestry or mining etc. An improved transportation network will be key to servicing those markets.

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