GUYSUCO’s problems are political not managerial

Jan 03, 2025 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

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Peeping Tom…

Kaieteur News- The sugar industry has been for centuries Guyana’s agricultural backbone. Yet, its struggles have persisted for decades. The cause? Political meddling, not managerial shortcomings.

GUYSUCO’s managers have always included some of the country’s best. If there are any persons who understand the sugar industry, they are to be found within GUYSUCO. Many were even recruited by overseas sugar firms. The talent is undeniable. The problem lies elsewhere.

Political interference has been the bane of GUYSUCO’s existence. Under the APNU+AFC, meddling reached alarming levels. The sugar reform process was hijacked. Thousands of workers were sent home. Estates were shuttered. The industry’s scale was reduced, crippling its efficiency. These decisions did not come from the management. They were political.

But the PPPC governments are not blameless. They had a major part in GUYSUCO’s demise. The Skeldon Sugar Factory is a glaring example of this complicity. Conceived as a flagship project, it became a financial black hole. Resources that could have sustained the industry were drained.

The PPPC’s interference didn’t end there. Experienced managers were sidelined. Inexperienced leadership was implanted. The result? Increased woes for an already struggling corporation.

Today, the politicization continues. Political leaders openly threaten management changes. This undermines the role of GUYSUCO’s Board. It is the Board that should hold management accountable. The political directorate should hold the Board accountable. Instead, political leaders scapegoat management. Announcements of imminent changes spotlight the meddling.

The APNU+AFC’s right-sizing plan was flawed. Capping production to 150,000 tonnes per annum was ill-conceived. Economies of scale were ignored. Political interference persisted. ‘Outsiders’ took over one staff compound. Assets were either plundered or left to rot. The industry struggled under crushing debt. A major loan was taken from a private bank. This further saddled the corporation with debt. But the implicit message was not lost. “You must row your own boat. We are not bailing you out in the future.” The plan was doomed from the start. The cost to the local economy by downsizing, under the guise of right-sizing, was not factored into the economics of reform.

The PPPC’s approach hasn’t been better. Reopening closed estates without examining whether a large enough workforce could be reengaged was illogical. Many of the workers who left the industry or were fired are not returning. They have abandoned cutting cane. Floods, droughts, and a fire at Albion have worsened the situation. Production in 2024 was affected by these developments.

The PPPC’s strategy is aimless. The results are predictable. Even Mr Know-it-All is washing his hands of the problems of GUYSUCO.

GUYSUCO is vital to the rural economy. Both APNU+AFC and PPPC governments understand and acknowledge this. Yet, their actions belie their words. The vision for GUYSUCO is myopic. It’s confined to sugar. The corporation’s potential is ignored.

GUYSUCO can be more. It can diversify. It can evolve. It can transform. But political meddling blocks progress. The corporation’s potential remains untapped.

Imagine GUYSUCO as a national agricultural corporation. It could import fertilizers. It could support rice and cash crop farmers. It could dominate the agricultural inputs market. But this requires vision. Vision that’s lacking. But to go in this direction is to go against the bourgeois class that dominates the market for agricultural imports. Some politically-connected persons are also part of this market.

Imagine GUYSUCO as an industrial corporation. It could service the oil and gas sector. It could supply machinery and equipment. It could become a key player in industrial development. It could be involved in machining and fabrication and could, in so doing, find higher-paying jobs for trained young people. But this requires bold decisions. Decisions that aren’t politically motivated.

Imagine GUYSUCO as a housing corporation. Instead of selling lands at below-market prices, GUYSUCO can compete with private housing developers. It can make big money from housing development.

GUYSUCO has cultivation that is abandoned. Those lands could be leased to private farmers to make money for the corporation.

GUYSUCO is still responsible for drainage and irrigation in many areas. It could be given the exclusive management of coastal drainage and irrigation. It could lead coastal development. It should be paid for these services. Instead, the government pours billions into the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA). Money that can be given to GUYSUCO to do the same work. GUYSUCO’s potential is sidelined.

GUYSUCO can be made into a commercial titan, like Booker’s was. Instead, foreign companies dominate machinery imports. GUYSUCO’s trading potential is overlooked.

Political vision is absent. Political meddling has turned GUYSUCO into a pawn. Management is scapegoated. Solutions are superficial. The root causes remain unaddressed.

It’s time to change course. It’s time to depoliticize GUYSUCO. The Board must be empowered. No manager must be allowed to speak to the Chairman of the Board in the manner one manager was recorded as doing in the past. NO CEO must be appointed politically. Such appointments must come from the Board. Managers must be allowed to manage. Political leaders must step back. Accountability must be redefined.

GUYSUCO’s problems are political, not managerial. Its survival depends on political reform, not just managerial adjustments. GUYSUCO needs visionary leadership at the level of the Board. Leadership that sees beyond sugar. Leadership that embraces diversification.

The rural economy depends on GUYSUCO. The nation depends on its success. Political meddling must end. The corporation’s potential must be unleashed not curtailed.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of this  newspaper and its affiliates.)

(GUYSUCO’s problems are political not managerial)

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• APNU+AFC, Capping production, Peeping Tom, Political meddling, sugar reform

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