-President Ali announces, says initiative would foster national wealth creation as gov’t expands financial grants

PRESIDENT Dr. Irfaan Ali on Sunday outlined a bold plan to transform Guyana’s economic landscape by prioritising financial literacy and empowering communities to build wealth.

Speaking at a community engagement session in Belle West, Canal #2, Region Three (Essequibo Islands- West Demerara) , he revealed that the government will focus on educating citizens at community levels to ensure that increased financial grants are effectively used to drive long-term prosperity and equitable growth across the country.

“We’re going to invest in financial literacy. We’re going to educate the population by village, by street, by community. So, as we increase the grants that will come to you, as we increase it, you must see the importance of investing it to build prosperity in your future and build more wealth from those investments.”

As the government continues to expand its financial support to local communities, President Ali highlighted the importance of using these grants to build lasting prosperity.

The President emphasised that the goal is to create opportunities for wealth generation at multiple levels.

“So, we want to create the mechanism, and that is a big task before us in the next five years… to build and create these opportunities that will generate wealth at the individual, household, community, region and national level, so that there’ll be an evenness in the growth.”

President Ali reiterated a strong affirmation of the government’s vision for the country’s development. “We have a very clear and defined strategy. We have great clarity in what we want to do,” he said, assuring citizens that the administration’s plans are set to create a more prosperous and equitable future for all Guyanese.

Since assuming office in 2020, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government has invested heavily in the social welfare of Guyanese, while also building out the country’s infrastructural landscape to enable long-term growth and sustained development.

Among the plethora of measures are the re-introduction and increase of the education grant to $55,000 per child; the increase in old-age pension to $41,000; increase in public assistance; targeted cash transfers, including the ongoing $100,000 cash grant distribution exercise, the grant for persons living with disabilities, health and eye-care vouchers, the removal and reduction of taxes, along with other targeted tax-deduction measures.

President Dr. Irfaan Ali, while previously referencing the investments geared at enhancing the lives of all Guyanese, had said: “This is how the resources and revenues of this country is being spent every single day; to uplift the lives of people, to expand national wealth, to expand personal wealth, to expand community wealth. This is what the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic government is all about.”

These measures, he noted, are real policies and actions taken by the government to bring relief to citizens.

“We don’t demonstrate our love and commitment to people by noise; we demonstrate our love and commitment to people by real action, real policy, real intervention,” he added.

Consumer spending power in Guyana has also increased significantly, with statics showing consumption expenditure rose from $71 billion in 2015 to $1.465 trillion in 2024, reflecting a rate of increase of 20.6 times, representing 8.1 per cent of the GDP in 2015 and 26 per cent of GDP in 2024.