The rapid decline is worrying. I had no idea that the Guyanese economy was so reliant on drugs smuggling and the price of gold. The PPP did not care about cash crops like rice and sugar.
Rice production went to 700k tons under the PPP and increasing with a target of 1 mil tons in a few years.
Gold, well we knew the risks.
The biggest impediment to the development of the cash-crop economy was the price of energy as accessibility to regional markets are key. Downstream processing would make this more viable. How to they access cheap energy?
Rice production was never remotely 700k tons. And even if it were the scheme of oil for rice without setting fair prce for the product up front was using the farmers money for significant periods at no interest to fund the government's business here and it was as usual a family and friend business.
This business made millionaires of shippers who transported the rice and brought back oil ( among other things) It funded the massive gas stations and their overlords as the one who recently paid himself 28 million in wages on his own determination because he could. This was for all intents a poncy scheme. It kept the Farmers on a string as they fund this enterprise wholly on their work. Note the rice farmers funded Hope Canal in part if the PPP is to be believed and they also fund the entire GPL since it is on their backs oil enters the system here to produce electricity.
This regime need to restructure the whole deal here so farmers are paid upfront and buyers of oil locally be independent and pay upfront for the product. It cannot be given on credit when we are broke.