With Guyana preparing to mark its 60th anniversary of Independence on May 26, a deeper national debate is intensifying over what development truly means in a country now ranked among the world’s fastest-growing economies, yet still burdened by poverty, inequality and weak social outcomes.
That question is at the heart of a recent op-ed by Karen Abrams, published in Kaieteur News, in which the educator and business executive argues that Guyana’s oil wealth will amount to little if the country fails to invest meaningfully in its people.
Abrams, who holds a doctorate in education administration, an MBA, and extensive experience in artificial intelligence and executive leadership in corporate America, is the founder and Executive Director of STEMGuyana. Her intervention comes at a defining moment in Guyana’s history, with the country on the threshold of six decades of independence while wrestling with what many analysts see as an unsettled national development philosophy.
Since independence in 1966, Guyana has passed through several development models — from state-led cooperative socialism under Forbes Burnham, to economic liberalisation under Desmond Hoyte, which was continued under Cheddi Jagan and successive People’s Progressive Party governments.
However, analysts point out that while the liberalisation framework continued after Hoyte, it did so largely without the social amelioration programmes that characterised his model — programmes designed to cushion economic adjustment and create broader opportunities for equitable and inclusive development. In today’s oil era, many observers argue that development has become politically divisive, often framed through slogans such as “One Guyana,” but lacking a coherent national ethos rooted in equity, opportunity and human advancement.
Abrams confronts that contradiction directly, arguing that economic expansion without human development is unsustainable.
“Development is more than double-digit GDP growth. Development begins in the minds of every citizen as they come to believe that a path to a good life is available for every citizen. Development begins when leaders make us believe in a big vision, and then provide the foundation for its achievement.”
Her intervention comes at a time when Guyana’s oil revenues continue to rise. The Ministry of Finance recently reported that Guyana earned more than US$761 million in the first quarter of 2026 alone, the highest quarterly earnings since oil production began in December 2019. Rising global oil prices, partly fuelled by geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, have further boosted national earnings.
But Abrams warns that oil wealth alone cannot resolve deep-rooted structural problems.“The challenge for Guyana is figuring out how to invest those revenues in ways that will reduce the suffering of significant numbers of Guyanese while delivering returns to current and future generations.”
That warning aligns with sobering social realities. The Inter-American Development Bank’s 2025 Report estimates that 58 per cent of Guyana’s population lives in poverty, while 32 per cent live in abject poverty — stark figures in a country generating billions from oil.
For many analysts, those numbers expose the contradiction at the heart of Guyana’s economic transformation: soaring national wealth alongside persistent hardship.
The rising cost of living has further compounded those pressures, eroding wages, pensions and household incomes while increasing the cost of food, transportation and housing.
Abrams places the development challenge squarely on human capital, particularly education.
Citing the Ministry of Education’s Education Sector Plan 2021–2025, Abrams noted that only half of students enrolled at the general secondary level make it to the final grade — with the figures even more troubling when broken down by gender: just 39 per cent of boys and 62 per cent of girls complete secondary school.
For Abrams, that reality points to a systemic crisis that money alone cannot fix.
The figures reinforce broader concerns raised by the World Bank, which has consistently reported that Guyanese children lag behind their Latin American and Caribbean counterparts in educational outcomes, particularly in literacy and numeracy.
While acknowledging that “every child will not make it into college,” Abrams urges that every effort be made “to ensure that every child should be numerate, literate, and complete high school.”
She argued that real development requires both a mental and institutional shift.
“It is my view that development means that we first have to adjust to the idea that we are a wealthy nation, and that we must help our government to be exceptional, (not simply good) at providing basic services.”
That means stronger public systems in education, healthcare, electricity, roads, water, sanitation and social protection — services Abrams argues must provide the foundation for economic mobility and private enterprise.
Her vision extends beyond public policy to national identity and social cohesion.
In one of the most pointed passages of her op-ed, Abrams frames Guyana’s moment as a defining national choice.
“Guyana is at the crossroads, and we the people must decide what kind of nation we wish our grandchildren to enjoy. Do we want more high fences, closed gates, barred windows, and endless fears? Or can we envision a country where our foundation services are so solid that every citizen is prepared to contribute optimally, to drive innovation, to expand and diversify the local economy, to provide high-quality, high-paying jobs, and to build wealth for generations, not because they have unique access and privileges, but because each citizen can access opportunity equally, and, coupled with hard work, achieve success.”
The passage captures what many observers say is the central tension of Guyana’s oil age: whether wealth will deepen inequality and insecurity or become the foundation for a more inclusive society.
Abrams also called for a culture of continuous learning and practical skill-building. “A good rule is to learn one new thing every month,” she wrote, urging citizens to pursue practical competencies such as bookkeeping, tiling, solar installation, phone repair and other trades.
That recommendation reflects a broader labour market reality: while the oil economy is creating opportunities, it is also exposing longstanding inequalities in access, wages and preparedness.
Health outcomes, too, remain below regional standards, reinforcing Abrams’ central point that development must be measured by the quality of life of citizens, not merely the growth of national income.
Her warning about wealth concentration also taps into Guyana’s historical experience.
“Even before oil, Guyana was blessed with gold, diamonds, bauxite, rice, sugar, sunlight, and rain; magnificent wealth, which, since before independence, has seen the lion’s share of its benefits flow to foreign companies and a handful of wealthy families.”
It is a warning directed at the future as much as the past.
“When the story of Guyana’s oil is written, will a handful of families and foreign companies once again remain the main beneficiaries?”
With Guyana on the cusp of its Diamond Jubilee, Abrams’ op-ed reframes the national conversation away from GDP growth, oil revenues and infrastructure projects toward a more fundamental question: whether the country’s wealth is building a society where opportunity is broadly shared.
At its core, her message is that development must be judged by whether a child in Tiger Bay, Bath Settlement, Bydaraboo or Awarawaunau has a meaningful pathway to education, opportunity and success.
In a nation awash in unprecedented wealth, Abrams argues that may be the most important measure of all.
