Poverty cannot be solved by short-term interventions such as $100k cash grants—Jordan 

Jan 20, 2025 News

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Kaieteur News- Former Finance Minister, Winston Jordan has described this year’s $1.382 trillion fiscal plan as a “Disaster Budget,” or the People’s Progressive Party’s (PPP’s) farewell plan.

While appearing as a guest on Sunday’s Nation Watch programme, streamed on Facebook by the People’s National Congress Reform, Jordan jabbed at the budget presentation made by Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh on Friday, under the theme ‘A secure, prosperous and sustainable Guyana’.

In laying the foundation of his analysis, Jordan noted, “This disaster, even by the PPP standards must be ringing in the ears of those who hold the reigns of that party. As of today (Sunday), I don’t recall their greatest of cheerleaders- the private sector- I don’t recall them coming out even with an initial statement…and I don’t see that immediate reaction that they route with praising the government…this Budget is a disaster.”

He pointed out that while the government boasts yearly of the largest budget, this is really unnecessary as adjustments are imminent, using only inflation.

Shifting his attention to the data included in this year’s Budget, Jordan pointed out that there has been an increase in malnourished children in Guyana under the age of five. “Severely malnourished children in 2020 was 0.1; by 2024 when you got all of this money, between 2020 and 2025 adding in the latest Budget, the government would have spent $4.69 trillion, and between that period, the severely malnourished children under five have deteriorated from 0.1 to 0.5 in 2024,” he argued.

Similarly, Jordan pointed out that moderately malnourished children under the age of five has almost tripled from 0.5 in 2020 to 1.4 in 2024. Referring to these as “stark statistics,” the former Member of Parliament (MP) reasoned that these conditions are not alien to certain African countries where war, corruption and inability to manage the economy is prominent; however, Guyana has been ranked the fastest growing economy in the world.

Jordan was keen to note that more structured initiatives are desperately needed to address poverty in Guyana, rather than the short-term interventions, such as the $100,000 cash grants being doled out by government. “The issue of poverty will not be solved by short-term interventions. The issue of poverty, at 48%…cannot be solved by a one-off cash grant; 48% poverty cannot be solved by an increase in the threshold from $100,000 to $130,000. Poverty cannot be attacked by small increases in old-age pension,” the former Minister reasoned.

While these measures are “recognizable,” according to him, and perhaps needed as temporary reliefs, poverty must be addressed in long-term policies, structural re-orientation of the economy, creation of more permanent high paying jobs, substantial improvement in education and health and equitable distribution of income and resources.

Jordan said it was impossible to address poverty with a $5B cost of living allocation that has now increased to $7B.

Touching briefly on infrastructure, the former Finance Minister said government will continue with its trend which commenced in 2020 where the biggest budget is announced each year with the bulk targeting infrastructure that is poorly executed, with most projects not derived from an infrastructural plan. “They have never put out a transportation plan,” the former Minister argued, as he cited the recent announcement to construct a permanent bridge across the Berbice River.

Health

Meanwhile, on the health sector, Jordan told viewers of the programme that while government was proud to announce a $10,000 health voucher to offset the cost of medical tests for each citizen, it was an indictment on its claim to be modernizing the sector.

He explained, “They run out even in the Budget speech and claim how they are getting 12 new hospitals plus a women and children hospital, plus another one at West Demerara- brand new- another one at Suddie- brand new…all these brand new hospitals with their state-of-the-art equipment and you are introducing in 2025, an election year, another voucher, because that is another in a series of vouchers that this government has announced over the last three years that are tenable at private hospitals.”

Moreover, he highlighted more troubling statistics in the health sector. Reading from the Budget he pointed out that the crude birth rate per 1000 in 2020 was 20 while in 2024 it is still a staggering 19.5.

With regard to the crude death rate per 1000, he said this was 6.1 in 2020 and 7.6 2024, with 8.7 recorded in 2023.

To this end, Jordan argued, “In all this money that you have spent between 2020 and 2024 more babies are dying! More babies are dying…all your vouchers and so on can’t save these babies.”

Perhaps equally troubling was the loss of nurses in the public health sector. Still reading from the Budget, Jordan said, “This is the number of nurses per 10,000- in 2020 it was 27.6 but in 2024 it is 21.8. We are losing our nurses while you (are) building 12 new hospitals.”

On the other hand, Jordan blasted government’s $100,000 newborn cash grant scheme, discounting the announcement as an “insult”. He said, “It is an insult if you are going to suggest to me that I gonna give you a one-off (grant)…who is gonna take care of the baby after the one-off $100,000?”

He recalled that under the Burnham administration, cereals were provided through health centres for babies. As such he argued the need for government to craft a comprehensive social security safety net. Jordan suggested that this should include, “A revamped NIS, paying quality benefits; a legally instituted cash transfer programme that will incorporate the cash transfer and the Because We Care Grant and others…”

(Poverty cannot be solved by short-term interventions such as $100k cash grants—Jordan) 

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• budget, Disaster, Health, Jordan, poverty

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