Chronicles of CARICOM Countries: Guyana - by Shineco Sutherland

 

The totality of something is the sum of  all its constituent parts. In that vein, lets talk about one part of CARICOM - Guyana. Isn't Guyana such a fascinating country? 🤔🤔. I think that it is😁. It is replete with natural resources, situated in South America "on the doorsteps" of huge consumer markets (for eg. Brazil) but simultaneously it has a large diaspora and its currency is among the lowest valued in the region. Nowadays? Guyana seems to be on a newsworthy streak: the discovery of oil, election stand-offs and the recent liberalisation of its telecommunication sector. Stick around if you are interested in the unpacking of some of these issues.

In relation to the discovery of oil in Guyana, a plethora of narratives abound. One publication notes the new COVID-19 induced reality which has drastically reduced oil prices and dampened growth forecasts; others restarted discussions on the resource curse which sees resource-rich countries continue to be plagued by under-development; others highlight the new investment opportunities which will arise. It is left to be seen which of these narratives will hold but the people of Guyana (and Caribbean by extension) deserve that which creates socio-economic opportunities; allowing them to truly elicit development, poverty alleviation and higher standard of living from the country's resources. Some of the options available to foster such outcomes are ensuring that the human resources are adequately trained to participate in the higher-valued activities in the sector; using environmental impact assessments to minimise the negative impacts on the environmental ecosystems; ensuring that other economic sectors are simultaneously developed to foster diversification and to stave off the resource curse.

This new resource also invites a geopolitical environment which must be strategically managed, because it has implications for the extent to which Guyana can leverage improved trade and development opportunities. For instance,  US officials have increased outreach to Guyana and recently announced a joint maritime patrol of the disputed Guyana-Venezuela borders.  Such developments can easily foster environments of conflict, corruption and instability where the ultimate losers will be the people of Guyana and the Caribbean by extension. Therefore, strategic management of the new geopolitics is required. 

In domestic political development, likely influenced by the new prospects presented by oil, Guyana's election was held in March, 2020 and there was a five-month delay before a president was declared. For a moment there, conflict swarmed near the surface as the a battle was waged on which political party rightfully won the election. Thankfully, the battle was resolved in the court system. However, additional developments may have to be monitored for geopolitical implications. One recent development is the levying of  charges against the chief elections officer, in relation to his conduct in the March elections.  

In other news, the Guyanese telecommunications sector is now liberalised, ending the 30-year monopoly rule of the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph company. Most Caribbean nationals can remember that not so long ago their telecommunications sector were monopolies, largely attributed to small markets which could not profitably accommodate several firms simultaneously. Cue the poor quality service, high prices and a less hospitable business environment, issues which can be mitigated by the liberalisation of the sector. In light of the new buzz of the ICT-based fourth industrial revolution and the new oil-driven prospects, the end of the monopoly is welcomed news for Guyana and its ability to foster enhanced capacity to export; via application of technology for productivity gains, to mitigate low access to economies of scale, create a new class of higher-salaried jobs, etc. However, the relevant authorities/stakeholders must ensure that the necessary physical infrastructure, human resources and legislation are instituted, to leverage the new opportunities presented. 

Guyana is one of the More Developed Country in CARICOM so its developments trajectory can have implications for the regional integration movement. Hopefully, this trajectory is one which fosters internal development which can spill over into the regional sphere.