THE prospects for Guyana continue to be bright. According to the most recent Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) report, Guyana is on track to once again achieve double-digit economic growth this year after having experienced phenomenal growth rates in the previous two years.

According to the ECLAC report, Guyana’s growth rate for 2023 is projected at 37.2 per cent which is consistent with the projection of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

This is a remarkable improvement of the country’s growth trajectory which a mere five years ago recorded single digit growth rates. The drilling of oil by oil-giant ExxonMobil is an economic game-changer even though the full benefits of the emerging oil and gas sector are still to be realised.

The spectacular growth rates are all the more significant given the economic downturn of several economies as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

The meteoric increase in the country’s economic performance is a blessing by any standard. Indeed, there are already indications of progress in all facets of economic and social life. Yet, despite the manifest benefits that the country is experiencing, there are still some elements in our society who continue to find fault with the contract between the Government of Guyana and ExxonMobil.

These are people who either have their own political agendas or who lack the ability to see development holistically and dialectically. The oil contract may not be ‘ideal’ from a Guyana perspective but like it or not, it had, as it were, already been sealed and signed under the previous APNU+AFC administration and little, if anything, can now be done about it.
The important thing, as emphasized by both President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali and Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, future oil contracts will certainly be on much more favourable terms to Guyana.

But our economic and social progress transcended that of our oil and gas resources. It is also about the prudent management of the economy by the PPP/C administration and its pro-people development thrust. The economic base is being broadened and diversified to avoid dependence only on oil.

Patience is virtue. Guyanese over the decades have been told of our carbon riches but several past exploratory drilling operations came up empty-handed. Now we are an oil-producing country and we are already benefitting in tangible ways from the proceeds of oil. And yet this is only the beginning of our economic journey along the road to economic and social prosperity.

As pointed out by President Ali in his Eid-ul-Fitr message, we all have the ability to be thankful for what we have. And even in our current developing economic circumstance, we are still ahead of the vast majority of the world’s population, a significant number of whom are forced to live on less than US$1 a day. The President also took the opportunity to stress the importance of contentment and the virtues of endurance, submission and acceptance.

“This is the reality of the world we live in….400 million people have no access to health care. More than a billion people live on less than US$1 per day and half of the world’s population lives on less than GYD$1,300 per day,” President Ali noted.

The fact is that we have as a society much to be thankful for. Guyana is no longer a pariah state as it was at one time under the PNC regime. We are on our way towards a united, prosperous and cohesive society along the lines of the ‘One Guyana’ vision as articulated by President Ali.