President Irfaan Ali has spoken of Guyana experiencing a movement of people that could bring the country’s population to about three million by 2030. That statement must place migration squarely within the national conversation.
Migration itself is not the problem. The concern is what happens when large numbers of people enter the country while Guyanese continue to leave in search of better wages, education, healthcare and opportunities elsewhere—and whether Guyanese will retain a meaningful economic, political and social stake in the country they built.
We cannot be indifferent to the possibility that Guyanese could become a smaller proportion of the population while simultaneously being pushed to the margins of their own country’s economic and political life. In a society already struggling with division and questions about inclusion, such a demographic and economic shift demands serious national discussion rather than political silence.
Guyana cannot pretend that all is well while the country’s wealth expands, its population changes and its people remain divided along political, ethnic and economic lines. A nation cannot call itself developed while its own citizens increasingly question whether they have a meaningful stake in the wealth beneath their feet, the opportunities created by that wealth and the decisions determining their future.
Our history of ethnic rivalry and political tension should have taught us that exclusion breeds resentment, destroys trust and weakens the bonds that hold a society together. Instead of confronting these dangers honestly, Guyana risks allowing economic inequality, political division and unequal access to opportunity to deepen.
Guyana’s oil wealth and other natural resources must not produce a country in which citizens are spectators to prosperity. Development must mean more than impressive economic statistics, large infrastructure projects and rising national revenues. It must mean Guyanese having access to decent work, owning businesses, participating in decision-making, securing opportunities for their children and having confidence that their country has a place for them.
If these matters are not confronted now, the consequences could become far more difficult to reverse.
The trade union movement therefore places renewed emphasis on advancing international charters, conventions and laws and putting programmes in place that make social cohesion meaningful through greater inclusion, civic participation and opportunities for upward mobility.
The United Nations describes social cohesion as “the glue that holds society together.” Its analysis rests on three important values: social inclusion, social capital and social mobility. It is a condition for Guyana’s survival as a stable and democratic society.
Social inclusion means every citizen and group has a genuine opportunity to participate in the economic, social and political life of the country. Guyana’s Constitution calls on us to “Celebrate our cultural and racial diversity and strengthen our unity by eliminating any and every form of discrimination.”
Inclusion must be visible in who gets jobs, who benefits from national resources, who participates in decision-making and who has access to opportunity.
The Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC) is on record repeatedly calling for constitutional protections covering inclusionary democracy, economic development, freedom of association, protection from discrimination and trade union participation in State decision-making. These obligations are reinforced by Guyana’s international commitments on human and labour rights.
Social capital is about trust between citizens and trust in institutions. That trust cannot survive if Guyanese believe that political connections, ethnicity or privilege determine who benefits from the country’s transformation. The GTUC has in the public domain a Labour’s Platform for Guyana that advances sustainable development, decent jobs and full employment, stronger democracy and governance, and social and labour rights.
Social mobility means having a real opportunity to improve one’s circumstances. Migration exposes this challenge. Guyanese continue to leave because of wages, limitations in health and education and the search for professional opportunities. The loss of graduates and skilled workers is a national development issue. Guyana must create conditions that retain its human capital and encourage those abroad to return.
Gender equality is part of that equation. Women are performing strongly in education, yet qualified women remain underrepresented in decision-making. At the same time, declining educational outcomes among Guyanese boys require urgent attention. A country cannot afford to leave either half of its population behind.
Guyana must also modernise its data systems so decisions are driven by evidence rather than convenience, and establish an equitable tax system in which the privileged few cannot avoid their fair contribution to national development.
Guyana is becoming richer, but that does not automatically mean Guyanese are becoming more secure, included or empowered. Oil wealth gives us an opportunity to break from the failures of the past. But if wealth is concentrated, opportunity restricted and citizens excluded from decisions affecting their future, economic growth could intensify the very divisions social cohesion is meant to overcome.
Guyana therefore needs more than development; it needs inclusive development. The nation’s wealth must create decent work, broaden opportunity, strengthen institutions and give every Guyanese a reason to believe they belong in the future being built.
