President Irfaan Ali has told the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) that sugar remains essential to rural livelihoods, but mounting data point to an industry in serious financial and structural trouble.
Addressing GAWU’s 50th anniversary Thursday at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, the President defended continued state support for the sector, stressing its role in sustaining communities and economic activity. “The sugar industry remains too essential to the rural economy to be allowed to collapse,” he said.
However, the state of the industry tells a far more troubling story. Once the backbone of Guyana’s economy, sugar is now weighed down by high production costs, falling output, and a shrinking workforce—trends that have persisted over decades.
Figures show that the state-owned Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) continues to operate at a steep loss, producing sugar at about US$1.23 per pound while earning less than US$0.40. The corporation’s wage bill alone is estimated at $13 billion annually, funded largely through government subventions.
Production has also lagged significantly. In 2024, output reached just over 47,000 tonnes—less than half of the 100,000-tonne target—underscoring ongoing underperformance.
Employment trends further reflect the sector’s decline. When the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) took office in 1992, GuySuCo employed 28,081 workers; by 2015, that number had dropped to 16,927, a loss of more than 11,000 jobs.
GAWU President Seepaul Narine, who also addressed the ceremony, described the 2015–2020 period as one of the most difficult for the industry, while acknowledging efforts to restore jobs and rebuild the sector.
Between 2015 and 2020, under the David Granger-led A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) government, the sugar industry underwent major restructuring, including the closure of estates such as Wales, East Demerara, Rose Hall, and Skeldon. The policy was driven by concerns that the industry had become financially unsustainable due to persistent losses, high production costs, and declining output.
The government also introduced measures to cushion the impact on displaced workers, including severance payments—at one stage committing to pay at least 50 per cent upfront—as well as initiatives aimed at retraining and facilitating alternative employment.
Despite these measures, the restructuring resulted in the displacement of approximately 5,160 sugar workers, which was occasioned by economic strain on rural communities that relied heavily on the estates.
Analysts argue that the continued push to sustain sugar, despite its financial burden, raises questions about the true motivations behind the policy. They point to the close alignment between GAWU and the ruling party, and the perception that sugar workers form a key political base, suggesting that the industry’s survival may be driven as much by political considerations as by economic ones.
Even as President Ali acknowledged that rebuilding the sector is complex and requires long-term commitment, he called for unity in restoring its viability. “Let us combine our efforts, our experience, and our shared commitment to restore the sugar industry to its state of viability,” he said.
The union, which has represented sugar workers for five decades, marked its 50th anniversary under the theme “Born of Struggle, Built for Justice: Celebrating 50 years of GAWU’s recognition in the sugar industry.”
But with billions already injected, targets repeatedly missed, and losses continuing to mount, the contrast between the President’s assurances and the industry’s current state underscores a stark reality—Guyana’s sugar sector remains in deep trouble.
