quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:
Lady trying to do a cost of living analysis. Give her honest answers so she can do proper estimate.

quote:

Originally posted by alex:
an able bodied construction worker can make, a minimum of 60,000 per month, entry level clerical jobs pay around 40,000 per month and bus drivers work 4,000 per day

quote:

Originally posted by the new yorker:

quote:

Originally posted by alex:
an able bodied construction worker can make, a minimum of 60,000 per month, entry level clerical jobs pay around 40,000 per month and bus drivers work 4,000 per day

wow, that's pretty insane. the highest paid person from that group earns around $300 US a month!! An office worker around $150! How can these people survive on that?!

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:
Most homes have dual incomes today. More young women in the work force than ever before. Garment factories employ thousands of them. Mortgage payments and utitility bills such as water and electricity must be paid. It's becoming like NY... You got work hard to stay in that home.

quote:

Originally posted by the new yorker:

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:
Most homes have dual incomes today. More young women in the work force than ever before. Garment factories employ thousands of them. Mortgage payments and utitility bills such as water and electricity must be paid. It's becoming like NY... You got work hard to stay in that home.

i hear you about the working hard part, and i'm all for that, but for one outfit to cost 1.5% of a person's annual salary is mind boggling.

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:
Many of them moonlight on farming and livestock. Families economize and optimize in ingenius ways. Fishing in rivers, sea, and backlands helps the family budget. Receiving gifts from friends and families overseas are very common.

quote:

Originally posted by the new yorker:

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:
Many of them moonlight on farming and livestock. Families economize and optimize in ingenius ways. Fishing in rivers, sea, and backlands helps the family budget. Receiving gifts from friends and families overseas are very common.

guyana is a relatively large country with numerous natural resources and a very, very small population. i don't understand why there is such widespread poverty (i mean, other than the politicians stealing).

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:
Poverty is a relative concept. How do we determine at what income level one is considered to be living in poverty in Guyana?

quote:

Originally posted by alex:
My home monthly Expenses in Guyana, one baby and wife:

GPL 20,000 (subsidized by solar)
Telephone 6,000
Internet 10,000
Water GWI 1,000
Grocery $100,000
Dining & Entertainment 60,000
Clothing 20,000
Gas $30,000 (car & bike)
No Mortage

No Gym (cycle, run and home gym)

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:

quote:

Originally posted by the new yorker:

quote:

Originally posted by alex:
an able bodied construction worker can make, a minimum of 60,000 per month, entry level clerical jobs pay around 40,000 per month and bus drivers work 4,000 per day

wow, that's pretty insane. the highest paid person from that group earns around $300 US a month!! An office worker around $150! How can these people survive on that?!

Most homes have dual incomes today. More young women in the work force than ever before. Garment factories employ thousands of them. Mortgage payments and utitility bills such as water and electricity must be paid. It's becoming like NY... You got work hard to stay in that home.

quote:

Originally posted by the new yorker:

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:
Poverty is a relative concept. How do we determine at what income level one is considered to be living in poverty in Guyana?

true, it is relative, but based on what i've heard, there is a very large part of the population whose most basic needs (food, shelter, clothing, medical/dental care) cannot be met with what they are earning. Not being able to meet those basic needs is what I consider poverty. Also, what is the deal with birth control for the poor in Guyana. Is it readily available?

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:

quote:

Originally posted by the new yorker:

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:
Poverty is a relative concept. How do we determine at what income level one is considered to be living in poverty in Guyana?

true, it is relative, but based on what i've heard, there is a very large part of the population whose most basic needs (food, shelter, clothing, medical/dental care) cannot be met with what they are earning. Not being able to meet those basic needs is what I consider poverty. Also, what is the deal with birth control for the poor in Guyana. Is it readily available?

I think a small segment of the population are in dire need of the basic stuffs you mentioned. Guyana is no longer a desperate society as was in the Burnham/Hoyte years. It is self-evident that housing has improved beyond belief and shortage of foods have completed disappeared. We no longer import 90% of chicken from the USA. That figure stands less than 10%. Government incentives provided the livestock industry was the real catalyst behind the boom in livestock production. Basic medical care is widely available at almost no cost. Every village has a medical clinic staffed with either a Cuban doctor or a Guyanese trained Cuban doctor ready to give you assitance. Major medical care such as surgery can be a problem in Guyana. The gov't has been working on solving this problem by making it a business venture for outside doctors. We have been hearing about a group of Indian doctors who expressed interest in building a state of the art surgical hospital at Turkeyen.

quote:

Originally posted by the new yorker:
thanks for that info, BRB. it's good to hear, if accurate. i cannot say either way as it's pretty obvious i know very little about what life is like there. i'm trying to become more informed, but short of actually living there for a while, it's difficult.

does the government publish financial information of tax receipts and expenditures? is there an auditing body?

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:

quote:

Originally posted by the new yorker:
thanks for that info, BRB. it's good to hear, if accurate. i cannot say either way as it's pretty obvious i know very little about what life is like there. i'm trying to become more informed, but short of actually living there for a while, it's difficult.

does the government publish financial information of tax receipts and expenditures? is there an auditing body?

They certainly do. Government does report on revenues and expenditures as well as tax brackets and exemptions. The press in Guyana and the various forums on the internet tend to neglect this vital information. Those in the opposition just dismiss everything from Government's version of the Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes as propaganda. The GDP and GDP per capita, inflation rate, changes in real income, etc are info we use to judge the economic health of a country.

quote:

Originally posted by the new yorker:
thanks alex. that's not nearly as bad as i thought. i didn't think one could get sneakers or a pair of jeans for $10 US. the reason for the request is that those are some of the items i'm planning on sending, and i was wondering if it's just cheaper to send cash. looks like i might have been better off just doing that since the cost to ship stuff there is so high. thank you!