Economy

The coronavirus, COVID-19, has taken a toll on Guyana’s tourism sector, resulting in a 46-percent decline in earnings and a 30-percent loss of jobs to date, according to the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA). The authority, which is a semi-autonomous government agency, predicted that 50 percent of tourism businesses would have to close their doors permanently if they do not get ...

The Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GTT) says it will be cutting salaries temporarily in an effort to ensure the country’s largest telecommunications company survives the “turbulent times during the COVID-19 pandemic.” “This unprecedented situation is already having a severe financial impact on the business and we are just at the beginning. In a bid to ensure continued service provision ...

The African Cultural and Development Association (ACDA) on Wednesday called on the Guyana government to set aside the political situation and provide emergency relief due of economic hardships brought on by the COVID-19 decline in economic activity. “A more robust and broad-based stimulus package for households and business, that can protect the people and economy of Guyana from the potentially ...

The Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) and the Eugene Correia International Airport (ECIA) will remain closed to international flights until May 1, 2020, in order to continue mitigating the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. “The closure of the airspace will greatly assist in minimizing the spread of COVID-19 by limiting international contacts,” the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) said. The ...

Plummeting demand for oil as a result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and an oil price war are expected to see Guyana earning less than the US$300 million it had expected to rake in annually from the Liza Phase 1 project and force ExxonMobil to push back developing other oil reservoirs, an analyst said. ExxonMobil spokeswoman in Guyana, Janelle Persaud ...

By GHK Lall We reach for a mirage, we clutch at straws, we sprawl before the world. In my estimation, Guyana’s political junkyard dogfight is all about power. I am unmoving that ascending to power provides the first access to the feverishly desired control and dissipation of that opulent oil ocean out there within this country’s borders. Though those are ...

Republic Bank (Guyana) Limited has started waiving late fees and other penalties on the repayment of credit card debts, loans and mortgages as well as allowing eligible customers to postpone loan repayments for the next six months, in keeping with a request by the Bank of Guyana to all commercial banks. “In response to the anticipated impact as a result ...

The 100 percent-owned Guyanese recruitment company, Pandora Energy, says it has made significant progress in hiring Guyanese to work on vessels associated with the exploration and production of oil in Guyana and several other countries, after initially experiencing stiff foreign competition. “For some time, we found it difficult to secure contracts to provide manpower services to the offshore clients operating ...

Over 50 businesses participating in the upcoming Guyana Trade and Investment Exhibition (GuyTIE) 2020 scheduled for May, 2020, benefitted from capacity-building sessions in the key areas of trade facilitation and corporate social responsibility (CSR) over the course of three days. CSR is a self-regulating business model that helps a company be socially accountable—to itself, its stakeholders, and the public. CSR ...

Finance Minister Winston Jordan on Wednesday announced that the value added tax (VAT) is likely to be reduced to 12 percent as part of an overall package of tax reductions and concessions on building materials and certain productive sectors. Jordan, who has been on the 2020 election campaign trail, told a sod-turning ceremony for two internationally-branded hotels, that corporation and ...