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Gov’t borrowing on interest but allowing foreigners to fetch out Guyana’s wealth – Glenn Lall
Kaieteur News – Guyana has been blessed with bauxite, timber, gold, diamonds, manganese and oil but these resources are not being used to advance the country’s development trajectory. Politicians are instead allowing foreign companies to exploit these resources for their benefit while the country turns to financial lending institutions to fund local projects.
Publisher of Kaieteur News, Mr. Glenn Lall
Flagging this unsettling reality on his radio programme was Publisher of Kaieteur News, Mr. Glenn Lall on Friday evening. During the broadcast aired on 99.1 and 99.5 FM, the businessman expressed concern over Guyana’s rapidly increasing debt.
Lall believes Guyana may be committing the sins of other resource-rich nations by driving up the debt burden on account of future earnings.
At the end of 2023, the country’s total stock of debt increased by 23%, climbing from US$3,654.9 million at the end of 2022 to US$4.5 billion at the end of 2023.
This year, government intends to fund 40% of the country’s first trillion-dollar budget from loans, a worrying trend that could be disastrous for the country’s economy according to Lall.
The newspaper Publisher explained that the $1.146 trillion budget totals close to US$6 billion. The 40% to be funded through loans amounts to about US$2.4B, while another US$1B is likely to come from the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) or the oil account.
He explained, “Aunty, you borrowing almost half a month of your husband’s next month’s salary to eat and run the house, and paying whoever you borrow the money from heavy interest. You already in debt with other neighbours, and now you gone and take more from another neighbour. How you coming out that hole? That is the hole Jagdeo been digging year after year and continues to dig for all of us…you have wealth in abundance in your back yard uncle, and got debt already, and you still borrowing more fuh pay interest to survive.”
Lall said this leadership style was observed in Africa and Asia and has made its way to Guyana. “Them was living on borrowed money and spending oil money in advance. That have many of their countries where they are today, running with their knees on the ground and hands stretching to give their people a cup of water. The boasters become beggars and losers,” he said.
The businessman argued that a resource-rich country, with a US$4.5B debt on its back is still going to increase this burden and pay interest to creditors. He pointed out that Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo during his Thursday press conference indicated that $44B is set aside to service the country’s debt.
Lall was keen to note that this already startling figure, some US$220M will continue to balloon as the government continues to increase the debt burden.
He said, “Come next year, the US$220M awe a pay now to service the debt, we will have to add another US$100M, so you will be paying no less than US$325M to service debts.”
Meanwhile, the businessman noted that the government is putting all of its proverbial eggs into one basket as any drop in oil price or a devastating oil spill could change the country’s prospects significantly.
He reasoned, “You borrowing money fuh buy car, fix up your house, and spending wild west with yuh family this month, and not catering if the husband – the sole provider run into an emergency and can’t work back, or he drop dead, wah gon become of the family, the car and the house – them gon be in the streets, just like Africa and Asia.”
Lall pointed out, “This country have wealth that the world boasting about, the world dribbling over it, and this whole nation a dribble from hunger. Ayuh see why them can only give ayuh a 4-slice squash as salary increase, yes, you salary increase wha supposed to be in your pockets, going to the overseas banks to pay debts.”
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