President’s speech on debt burden was a dud

October 10, 2026·1 min read

Dear Editor,

The President’s response on the debt burden Guyana is currently saddled with reminds me of my boyhood days when we would shake the carbon in a can and then apply some fire for it to explode. We were all excited when it made that deafening sound. Everyone cheers. However, sometimes it does not explode, we became sad and say it was a “SUS”. Simply put, it was a failure.

This is exactly what happened with the President’s speech on the debt burden – it was a SUS.

Mr. President, we all learnt that when undertaking analytical work, one must be cognizant of the facts, but more specifically the comparative numbers must reflect the same base. In other works, as the saying goes “you cannot compare apples with oranges”.

Mr. Surujdai Juglall, in reviewing the Ministry of Finance Mid-Year Report 2026 in Kiskadee Watch nails the base of the argument. He posits that when comparing pre-oil GDP with post-oil GDP, one must be mindful to use the same base. In this case, the only qualifying base is the pre-oil GDP.

As Mr. Juglall correctly surmised, the current debt to GDP without oil production is over 150%. Let me repeat this, the current debt to non-oil GDP is more than 150%. Are we moving back to the dark ages you alluded to in your “SUS” remarks?

Sincerely,
Charles Sugrim

Highlights of the 2026 Mid-Year Report on the performance and state of affairs of the economy - Kiskadee Watch

kiskadeewatch.com · 2026-10-04

Highlights of the 2026 Mid-Year Report on the performance and state of affairs of the economy - Kiskadee Watch # Highlights of the 2026 Mid-Year Report on the performance and state of affairs of the economy By Anand Goolsarran Sun, October 4 2026, 2:03 AM GMT-4 ... Now for today’s article. Section 67 of the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act requires the Minister of Finance to present to the National Assembly within 60 days after the end of the first half of each fiscal year a report on the year-to-date execution of the annual budget and the prospects for the remainder of that fiscal year. Also to be included in the report are the following: (a) An update on the current macroeconomic and fiscal situation, a revised economic outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, and a statement of the projected impact that these trends are likely to have on the annual budget. (b) A comparison report on the out-turned current and capital expenditures and revenues with the estimates originally approved by the Assembly with explanations of any significant variances. (c) A list of major fiscal risks for the remainder of the fiscal year, together with likely policy responses that the Government proposes to take to meet the expected circumstances. During a meeting of the Economic Services Committee of the Assembly held recently, the President spoke about the performance of the economy for the first half of 2026. This prompted us to check the Ministry of Finance’s website where we found the 2026 Mid-Year Report. It is dated 28 August 2026 but according to Chartered Accountant and Attorney-at-law Christopher Ram, it was only released on 14 September 2026. It is important to note that the report is required to be presented to the Assembly within the 60-day period to enable the Legislature to consider it and to take appropriate action to bring actual performance in line with planned performance in the event that there are significant variances, or if this is not possible, to adjust the budget to a more realistic level. To the extent that the report is yet to be tabled in the Assembly by virtue of the fact that Assembly is in recess and is not expected to reconvene until after 9 October, the law has not been fully complied with. That apart, by this time the Assembly reconvenes it will be too late for legislators to consider the report. Additionally, in the past, there was no discussion or debate on the report in the Assembly, which is a significant shortcoming in our system of public financial management and accountability. In previous articles on the subject, we had suggested that the Minister consider presenting to the Assembly future Mid-Year Reports at the end of July. It seems inappropriate for the Assembly to spend approximately three weeks every year to consider draft National Budget before approving it but the half-yearly results on its execution is not made available to them in a timely manner. In this regard, we renew our suggestion.

Source

President’s speech on debt burden was a dud in Kiskadee Watch, October 10, 2026

Guyana GDP First Half 2026: 33.3% Growth, Oil and Non-Oil Breakdown

www.lacaribenanews.com · 2026-09-15

La Caribeña News title card presenting a headline on Guyana's 33.3 per cent growth alongside a table of 2026 sector growth forecasts and key statistics. Figures on the card reported by Mid-Year Report 2026, Appendix A1, Appendix A2 and others. Quick summary: Guyana's real GDP grew an estimated 33.3 per cent in the first half of 2026, the Ministry of Finance's Mid-Year Report shows. Non-oil growth was 10.1 per cent, down from 14.0 per cent a year earlier. The full-year forecast rose to 20.8 per cent, while the non-oil forecast was cut from 10.8 to 10.2 per cent. ... The Mid-Year Report 2026 published by the Ministry of Finance carries the detail behind both numbers. Its own tables show the full-year forecast for the whole economy raised, and the forecast for the economy outside oil lowered. ... *Source: Ministry of Finance, Mid-Year Report 2026, Appendix A2, citing the Bureau of Statistics.* ... Non-oil growth in the first half of 2025 was 14.0 per cent. For the full year, Budget 2026 projected non-oil growth of 10.8 per cent. The Mid-Year Report revises that to 10.2 per cent. | Sector | Budget 2026 forecast | First half 2026 | Revised 2026 forecast | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Whole economy | 16.2% | 33.3% | 20.8% | | Non-oil economy | 10.8% | 10.1% | 10.2% | | Construction | 25.4% | 24.7% | 27.6% | | Other mining and quarrying | 10.3% | 40.0% | 14.9% | | Services | 6.8% | 7.2% | 7.7% | | Gold | 5.4% | 11.3% | 5.4% | | Manufacturing | 12.9% | 3.0% | 10.7% | | Agriculture, forestry and fishing | 7.6% | -0.5% | 2.9% | *Source: Ministry of Finance, Mid-Year Report 2026, Appendix A1.* ... - 33.3%: real GDP growth, first half of 2026. 7.5%: first half of 2025. Source: Mid-Year Report 2026, Appendix A1. - 10.1%: non-oil growth, first half of 2026, against 14.0% in the first half of 2025. - Full-year forecasts: whole economy 16.2% at Budget, revised to 20.8%; non-oil 10.8% at Budget, revised to 10.2%. - 78.9%: petroleum and gas share of real GDP, first half of 2026 (68.1% in 2023). Source: Appendix A2, Bureau of Statistics. ... Real GDP grew by an estimated 33.3 per cent, according to the Ministry of Finance's Mid-Year Report 2026. The non-oil economy grew by an estimated 10.1 per cent. In the first half of 2025, overall growth was 7.5 per cent and non-oil growth 14.0 per cent. ... What is Guyana's ... The Mid-Year Report projects real GDP growth of 20.8 per cent, up from 16.2 per cent in Budget 2026, and non-oil growth of 10.2 per cent, down from the Budget's 10.8 per cent.

President’s speech on debt burden was a dud — Charles Sugrim — Opinion