Bibi take off your racist "me hate black man" cap off.

Now look at both industries.

1.  What has the PNC done to destroy sugar?  Was it in good shape on May 10th, 2015?

2.  Did it make sense to push rice to depend on the Venezuela market when Venezuela was SIMULTANEOUSLY committing hostile acts against Guyana, like seizing an oil exploratory vessel, and allowing its soldiers to INVADE Guyana to attack miners?  No apologies for EITHER event.  Their behavior basically stalling development in the region where most of Guyana's natural resources exist.

What rational part of your brain suggests that the Venezuela market was sustainable, and not merely subject to the whims of Venezuelan dictators?

3. Did the rice farmers just begin to complain about not being paid.  I do recall that this was a MAJOR political issue.

Right now your screams merely represent your basic hatred of blacks, and until you present rational evidence to back your claims, this is all it will be.

I will suggest to you that the operating costs of a highway are much less than that of a rail system.  Even in the USA the rail system isn't profitable, requiring very heavy subsidies.  

Guyanese will jump in a minibus as they are cheaper, and schedules more flexible.  You yourself stated that the more comfortable Brazilian buses weren't used.

Aside from sugar what high volume, low value cargo is transported within Guyana to allow PROFITABLE operation of a rail system?

1.  I guess you didn't see the picture of the DRY Amalia Falls.  The IDB themselves killed the deal with their feasibility study.  That was merely another poorly conceived plan like the PPP's Skeldon and Marriott Hotel.

The Brazilians want to build and finance hydro. LET THEM!  Then let Maduro go have a temper tantrum with Dilma.

Sadly that opportunity is now lost, as with Brazil under going a recessions, major investment is most likely off the table.

2. And the idiocy of you thinking that Venezuela was sustainable.  Even as we speak Venezuela was holding back the development of Guyana by squashing attempts to develop its resources.  And just to show what bullies they were, periodically INVADING Guyana and ATTACKING Guyanese.

IN ADDITION, you really ought to stop peddling the lie.  Venezuela was already reducing rice purchases and had signaled that they would switch to Uruguay. 

But you would rather Guyana NOT respond to Venezuela's aggressions, when it published and promoted a map showing what it considers to be its marine resources.

Do you know that when some one is aggressive on some one else, and the injured party fails to respond, then it is interpreted that the aggression is based on MUTUAL consent.

Maduro is NOT interested in serious discussions with Guyana, and is BULLYING Guyana, as he does his domestic opposition, yet you sing all praises to him.

Under stand something.  NO ONE gives a rat's ass about Guyana, including the rest of CARICOM.  Unless Guyana makes a huge noise about this, then the issue will be ignored. Maduro has to be revealed for the BULLY that he is.

But you want him to take over Guyana, because "black man a rule".

Cut your racist ignorant crap.  The post 2008 hit service based economies, but benefitted commodity based one. South America entered a boom as China expansion resulted in commodity prices increasing.  Gold prices increased for a whole multitude of reasons.

Given that Guyana's economy does NOT focus on providing services to North American and European consumers, but in supplying RAW commodities, it was NOT hurt by the 2008 recession.

As China's economy slows, and its purchases of commodities drops, those whose economies depended on this will see lower growth.  We need only to look next door to Brazil.

1.  Sugar near death, made more so by the Skeldon mill.

'2.  Rice dependent on ONE market, that of an irrational lunatic, whose thugs invaded Guyana ATTACKED Guyanese, and seized oil exploration vessels, when the PPP continued to behave like an abused wife, saying NOTHING about this.

3.  Bauxite in difficulties for reasons you illustrate.

4.  Gold prices down, forcing down production, as many could no longer profitably operate.

So what was the PPP doing about all of this?  NOTHING.  So shut your Indo KKK RACIST MOUTH!

The scuttling of the rail system was indeed a mistake. However, the PPP killed both the sugar and rice industry. What the Granger government is doing is trying to limit the loss and salvage these industry from complete disintegration. Rice is easy. Sugar is far gone, maybe too far gone to be rehabilitated without courage to downsize.

Indeed right now we do not have a need for a rail system given we do not have the bulk cargo to sustain it. However, we do need to reserve the space for future construction of such a system We would especially need the 500 KM from Brazil to be paralleled by a train line. It would greatly enhance the need for a shipping port. Much of the cargo from interior Brazil could reach a transshipment point on our coast. A road system cannot fulfill the requirement of massive shipping required. One diesel can pull the volume of 200 cars at maximum. 

You can laugh at rice flour but it is far more in demand these days than regular flour given the gluten free craze sweeping the world. Rice flour is between 3 and 5 dollars a pound.

He is also right that we need to depend a bit more on barges to ship along the coast. It moves more for vastly lower cost than can presently move by trucks.

I would sooner endorse a rail connection to the Brazil border, given opportunities to transport bulk high volume, low value product out of Roraima.  This will have to be integrated into a proper deep water harbor, where ever a proper site can be located. 

Brazil could have assisted in any subsidies which might have been necessary.  Given that the land locked nature of Roraima, and the putrid transportation in the interior have acted as a constraint to economic development, such a subsidy might be justifiable.  NOT on the coast however.

Personally I think that the closure of the railway on the coast was inevitable, unless it was taken over by Bookers/Guysuco.

I am afraid that the time might have passed for this interior project, as current economic and political difficulties in Brazil might make massive investment in a remote frontier location, and in a foreign country to be impossible.

I think that Guyana missed the bus on that one.  More evidence of PPP incompetence.  They blew the deal because they weren't able to control it, and the Brazilians were less interested in corruption than are the Chinese.

When the train line was scuttled Bookers was still very much in force in Guyana.  So why didn't Bookers offer to buy it from the gov't if its role was so vital to the sugar industry?

Apparently even they didn't think it worth while.  If the rail system wasn't closed in the 70s, it would have been closed at some later point.

Abel is right on track with the describe of the PPP.

Whether its Armogan, Mustapha or Jaferally, contrary to their personal belief, they are forced to follow the PPP party hardline and spew its garbage or be sidelined.

Armogan  better watch his back, because he can easily be replaced, like the PPP reps at GECOM.

He is liked guy at service clubs, but if he maintains the PPP line of thinking, he might not have many friends, when they also kick him out.

The PPP has a very nasty habit of tarnishing  occasions like memorial service and unrelated events, with their political garbage, that turns off a lot of supporters.

Jagdeo seldom put his brain in gear before he speak and others follow, or else and the people/youth suffers the consequences.