Govt dissatisfied with phone companies services to hinterland communities

Last Updated on Tuesday, 1 September 2026, 22:13 by Denis Chabrol

President Irfaan Ali on Tuesday said his government was “dissatisfied” with the apparent failure of Guyana’s three telecommunications providers to expand their services to hinterland communities, but the main opposition We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) blamed government for failing to support the industry with much-needed electricity and roads.

Addressing the opening of Amerindian Heritage Month cultural extravaganza, he said One Communications Digicel and E-Networks had not been performing a high level of service in those areas.

“We are dissatisfied with the Digicel and the GT&T (now One Communications) and all the other service providers. ENET and everyone. They have to make more investment in the hinterland. They have to invest more in the hinterland. They have to bridge the communication divide and I call upon them to make the investments,” he said. 

The President said Prime Minister Mark Phillips had already spoken with those telecommunications providers about the need to erect towers on the Linden-Soesdyke highway. 

But WIN General Secretary Odessa Primus lashed back minutes later, blaming government for contributing to poor telecommunications service in those far-flung hinterland regions of Guyana. She said government could not expect the providers to improve their coverage of those communities without electricity. She also said those affected areas do not have roads that are needed to move in telecoms equipment for installation and service delivery. “What exactly are they supposed to connect to? Internet without reliable electricity? Are people supposed to charge their phones with sunlight and power their routers with good intentions? Did the PPP Government put roads in place for internet infrastructure to be set up?,” she said on her Facebook page.

Except for WhatsApp access by satellite Internet services such as Starlink, for instance, none of the three mobile phone services offers sustained connectivity in places like Imbotero, a village in northern Guyana near the border with neighbouring Venezuela.