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Guyanese contemplating running from oil-rich country over high cost-of-living – UK media reports
Guyanese flock the country’s capital, Georgetown in hopes of purchasing cheap items to sustain their families
Kaieteur News – The Guardian, a UK based media house recently reported that citizens of oil-rich Guyana are contemplating to leave the country as the cost of food soars, making it difficult to feed their families.
In the article published last month, ‘Guyana banks on future as a ‘new Qatar’ in high-stakes gamble over oil production’- the global media group delved into the country’s prospects with its newfound oil wealth.
The independent media organization interviewed a number of public officials in Guyana as well as members of civil society.
Highlighting the plight of Guyanese was Mark Murray, a 38-year old construction worker. He told The Guardian that he was considering emigrating. “You can’t feed your family as you like. The average person cannot eat earning $20 a day in Guyana.”
In a country where the cost of food has soared – a meal at a fast-food chain can cost £25 – many feel they are paying the environmental price of oil and gas exploration but not profiting from the economic boom, the British media house reported.
Guyanese locally and abroad have been protesting for changes for the lopsided oil contract signed between the government of Guyana and ExxonMobil back in 2016.
The deal allows Exxon and partners – Hess and CNOOC- to deduct 75% of earnings each month to recover their investments. The remaining 25% is then split evenly with Guyana as profits. The country also receives one of the lowest royalty rates in the industry – a meager two percent on its sweet, light crude.
Although Guyanese continue to demand a renegotiation of the deal for better fiscal terms, both government and the political opposition are reluctant to engage the oil companies for a renegotiation of the contract.
Guyanese public servants in particular have been fleeing the country for better working conditions and remuneration over the years but with the country’s discovery of oil resources, citizens were hopeful that their fortunes would change. This phenomenon however continues today as the country continues to lose its teachers, nurses, doctors and other skilled labour. Politicians have announced that Guyana will be importing the human resources it need from other countries to fill the gap.
In its report, The Guardian said despite complaints, the pace of Guyana’s growth is noticeable out on its streets. The British media observed that although the country’s capital city Georgetown still faces serious infrastructure gaps, trucks carrying construction supplies and workers labouring on new highways, hotels, shopping malls and luxury homes in gated neighbourhoods are everywhere. New hospitals and schools are under development inside and outside the capital as part of the president’s public service promises.
Notably, Mayor of Georgetown, Alfred Mentore underscored the importance of Guyanese being able to benefit from the country’s wealth. He told The Guardian, “We need to make sure that not only those causing this growth gain but also those at the bottom level also benefit.”
He continued, “Our capital’s GDP per capita grew 63% in 2022 and about 40% in 2023. The capital works and infrastructure growth are at a rapid pace,” but this is not enough. Mentore urged, “We need to make sure that not only those causing this growth gain but also those at the bottom level also benefit from this kind of trickle-down effect.”
Also sharing her views on the subject of Guyanese benefitting from their oil resources was teacher and General Secretary of the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU), Coretta McDonald. She told The Guardian, “I see a lot of optimism from government officials and scepticism from ordinary people…real people in the streets are not seeing, at least for now, the concrete benefits from the oil.”
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