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British media reports: Guyanese consider fleeing the oil-rich country due to high cost of living
Guyanese flock to the country’s capital, Georgetown, hoping to buy cheap items to support their families.
Kaieteur News – British media The Guardian recently reported that citizens of oil-rich Guyana are considering leaving the country because of soaring food prices and difficulty in supporting their families.
In the article published last month, “Guyana, in high-stakes gamble on oil production, hopes for future as ‘new Qatar’”, the global media group took an in-depth look at the country’s prospects under its newfound oil wealth.
The independent media organization interviewed a number of Guyanese government officials and members of civil society.
Mark Murray, a 38-year-old construction worker, highlighted the plight of Guyanese. He told the Guardian that he was considering emigrating. “You can’t feed your family as much as you want. In Guyana, the average person earns $20 a day and can’t get enough to eat.”
In a country where food costs have soared – a meal at a fast food chain can cost up to £25, many feel they are paying the environmental price of oil and gas exploration without profiting from the economic boom, according to British media reports.
Guyanese and foreign figures have been protesting against changes to the lopsided oil contract signed in 2016 between the Guyanese government and ExxonMobil.
Under the agreement, Exxon and its partners — Hess and CNOOC — get to deduct 75% of earnings each month to recoup their investments. The remaining 25% is split equally with Guyana as profit. Guyana also has one of the lowest royalty rates in the industry — just 2% for its light, sweet crude.
Despite continued calls by Guyanese to renegotiate the agreement for better fiscal terms, both the government and the political opposition are unwilling to renegotiate contracts with the oil companies.
For years, Guyana’s civil servants have been fleeing the country in search of better working conditions and pay, but with the discovery of oil resources in the country, citizens hoped that their fortunes would change. However, this phenomenon continues today as the country continues to lose teachers, nurses, doctors and other skilled labor. Politicians have announced that Guyana will import the required human resources from other countries to fill the gap.
The Guardian reported that despite complaints, Guyana’s speed of development is evident on the streets. The British media observed that although the country’s capital, Georgetown, still faces serious infrastructure gaps, it is full of trucks carrying construction materials and workers working on newly built roads, and luxury homes in hotels, shopping malls and gated communities can be seen everywhere. As part of the president’s commitment to public service, new hospitals and schools are being built in and around the capital.
Notably, Georgetown Mayor Alfred Mentore stressed the importance of Guyanese being able to benefit from the country’s wealth. He told The Guardian, “We need to ensure that not only those who have driven this growth are able to benefit, but also that the people at the bottom are able to benefit as well.”
He continued: “Our capital’s GDP per capita grew by 63% in 2022 and about 40% in 2023. Capital works and infrastructure are growing at a fast pace,” but this is not enough. “We need to ensure that not only those who drive this growth benefit, but also those at the bottom benefit from this trickle-down effect,” Mentor urged.
Coretta McDonald, a teacher and general secretary of the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU), also shared her views on the benefits Guyanese are getting from oil resources. She told The Guardian, “I see government officials being very optimistic while ordinary people are skeptical… At least for now, the ordinary person on the street has not seen any concrete benefits from oil.”
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