By Roysdale Forde- Guyana’s economic story in the early 21st century is often celebrated as a global success. In just a few years, the country has shifted from one of Latin America’s least dynamic economies to one of the fastest-growing in the world, propelled by offshore oil production and unprecedented foreign investment. Yet beneath this glossy narrative lies a troubling and persistent reality: for the majority of Guyanese, prosperity remains elusive, and daily life is increasingly defined by hardship.
The incumbent PPP/C administration routinely points to record-breaking GDP growth as evidence of sound stewardship. Indeed, the discovery and commercial exploitation of oil in the Stabroek Block have driven historic expansion. The International Monetary Fund reports extraordinary real GDP growth, supported by rising oil output and non-oil sector activity, and projects continued momentum with inflation hovering in the mid-single digits.
On paper, the numbers are impressive. GDP per capita, adjusted for purchasing power parity, has more than doubled in recent years, reflecting the massive inflow of oil wealth. However, macroeconomic averages conceal more than they reveal. For the average household, these gains are largely invisible.
Across Georgetown and other population centers, the cost of living has surged sharply. Food, housing, transportation, and utilities have all become more expensive, stretching already fragile household budgets. While official inflation figures remain moderate, they mask steep increases in essential goods, particularly food and fuel, which hit low-income families the hardest.
Staple items such as rice, flour, cooking oil, and public transportation now consume a growing share of household income. For many Guyanese, affordability has deteriorated to the point where even minor price increases threaten food security and financial stability. Wages, especially outside the oil sector, have failed to keep pace, eroding real purchasing power in a country awash with new wealth.
This widening gap exposes a fundamental failure of governance. The oil boom has enriched state coffers, yet its benefits have not translated into improved living standards for the majority. Traditional indicators of success – rapid growth, expanding reserves, and fiscal strength – mean little when citizens cannot afford basic necessities.
Most damning is the persistence of poverty. According to the Inter-American Development Bank, more than half of Guyana’s population lives in poverty, with over 30 percent classified as extremely poor. World Bank data similarly place nearly half the population below the US$5.50-a-day threshold, ranking Guyana among the highest poverty rates in the region. These are not outdated statistics from a pre-oil era; they are a stark reminder that oil wealth alone does not reduce deprivation.
Poverty remains most entrenched in rural, hinterland, and Indigenous Amerindian communities, where access to jobs, education, healthcare, and infrastructure is limited. Multidimensional poverty indicators show that modest income gains often fail to compensate for chronic deficiencies in water, sanitation, education, and healthcare. Thousands of Guyanese continue to endure overlapping forms of deprivation, even as the nation posts record growth.
Against this backdrop, the apparent indifference of the PPP/C government to rising hardship is deeply troubling. During its campaign for the 2025 General and Regional Elections, the administration promised a cash grant to households as a measure to ease cost-of-living pressures. That promise has since evaporated, with no clear explanation, timeline, or accountability. For struggling families who planned around this commitment, its abandonment is not merely disappointing – it is destabilising.
This broken pledge represents a serious indictment of the integrity of the PPP/C regime. In a democracy, trust is built on the consistency between words and deeds. When a government campaigns on relief for the people and then quietly retreats from those commitments, it corrodes public confidence and reinforces the perception that ordinary Guyanese are an afterthought in national policymaking.
Guyana’s oil boom has transformed the economy, but it has also exposed a familiar and dangerous pattern seen in many resource-rich states: without inclusive policies, strong institutions, and genuine concern for social welfare, wealth accumulates at the top while hardship persists below.
The path forward is neither mysterious nor unattainable. Oil revenues must be deliberately invested in education, healthcare, affordable housing, reliable public transportation, and robust social safety nets. Cost-of-living pressures require targeted subsidies for essentials, support for local food production, and wage policies that protect low-income workers.
Guyana stands at a defining crossroads. Its oil wealth presents a historic opportunity to lift living standards and eradicate poverty. But growth alone is not governance, and prosperity on paper does not feed families.
In an oil-rich nation, widespread poverty and rising living costs are not just economic failures – they are moral ones. The true measure of leadership lies not in GDP charts, but in whether national wealth is translated into dignity, security, and opportunity for every Guyanese. At present, that test remains unmet.
