Billions budgeted for health sector not benefiting Guyanese- Opposition

Dec 22, 2022 News

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…as AG report flags undelivered drugs

Kaieteur News – As Guyana gears to commence spending another US$97 million loan from the Inter-American Development (IDB) towards the improvement of the health sector, the Opposition has put the
country on notice not to expect benefits, as budgetary allocations to date have failed to reach
locals.

In an invited comment last week, the Leader of the Opposition, Aubrey Norton told Kaieteur
News, “I think what we need to understand is that expenditure under the PPP is not expenditure
that the people benefit from. A lot of it goes to corruption.”
He went on to explain that while reviewing the Auditor General’s report for 2021, he found that
millions had been paid over to a company for the supply of drugs but are yet to be delivered. To
this end, he made his point that, “Billions of dollars are budgeted for health but are not meeting
the people.”

On the other hand, Norton said he believes there is a “well orchestrated” plan by the People’s
Progressive Party (PPP) government to use its close associates to procure drugs on behalf of the
country, while in fact this would serve as an avenue to make money through corrupt practices.
“So I think essentially, we cannot look at the Budgetary allocations to determine what is
happening, we have to look at the reality and when you look at the reality on the ground, many
of the health institutions that are supposed to have pharmaceuticals, should have a certain
amount [number] of nurses, doctors etcetera [is lacking,] the Opposition Leader argued.
Just last week, this newspaper reported that Guyana was ranked second to last in the Region for
access to quality healthcare by the IDB. Norton said he believes the report is on point, as an
analysis on the ground would confirm. The situation, according to him, is compounded by an
unsatisfied workforce that is being underpaid.
He therefore concluded, “I think it is a reflection of the reality and this government is not a
government that is people-centered. This government is a government bent on putting resources
in the hands of the PPP elite, their friends, families and favourites while the people of Guyana
punish.”

Just recently, the IDB provided Guyana with a US$97M loan. That money is set to help
Guyanese authorities strengthen the health care network. As is customary with such loans, the
IDB conducts a review of the state of affairs for its borrower and how its loan will make a
difference. In one of its reports, the IDB spoke extensively about access to quality health care in
Guyana. It referenced the 2021 Global Health Security Index which measures how prepared
nations are for epidemics and pandemics. The IDB pointed out that Guyana placed 126th out of
195 countries and next to last in the Caribbean, after Haiti.

Additionally, the Auditor General (AG), Mr. Deodat Sharma, in his first full year review of the
PPP Government has found that a company owned by the friend of Vice President Bharrat
Jagdeo, received over $7 billion in contracts to supply medical products to the Ministry of
Health, but at the time of the audit, over $478 million in drugs was yet to be delivered.
According to the report, “An examination of the contracts revealed that amounts totalling $7.314
billion were entered with the NEW GPC. Amounts totalling $6.631 billion were paid to the
supplier which includes prior year payments totalling $683M.” However, at the time of
reporting, the Audit Office said supplies totalling $478.963M were yet to be delivered.
In response to the AG’s findings, the Ministry of Health acknowledged that as of September
2022 the $478.963 million in goods were yet to be delivered. It explained, “The remaining

deliveries are still ongoing due to logistical constraints that would have impacted the entire
supply chain negatively and as per MOH staggered delivery period.”
The Audit Office recommended that the Head of the Budget Agency take the necessary action to
ensure that the drugs and medical supplies already paid for are delivered as intended.
Meanwhile, Western Scientific Company, another drug supplier for the Ministry that received
the second highest amount in contracts also failed to deliver the products on time. The Auditor
General pointed out that, “amounts totalling $3.212 billion were paid as at 31 December 2021.
Of these payments, supplies valuing $695.671M are yet to be delivered at the time of reporting.”
Again, the Ministry confirmed that as of September 2022, the goods were not delivered due to
logistical constraints. The AG gave similar orders to ensure the drugs were delivered.

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