GUYANA | Mid-Year Report shows Guyana’s real GDP Growth of 36.4% says Finance Minister

GEORGETOWN,  November 8, 2022 - DPI- As Guyana’s economy continues to show positive growth and lead as one of the fastest growing economies in the world, Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance Dr. Ashni Singh today presented the country’s 2022 Mid-Year Report published by the Ministry of Finance.

The Report shows Guyana recording an overall real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 36.4 percent in the first half of the year, while the non-oil economy grew by 8.3 percent, reflecting Government’s supportive policy stance. The outlook for the second half continues to be favourable and for the full year, real GDP growth in 2022 is projected at 56 percent overall, and non-oil GDP growth at 9.6 percent, maintaining Guyana’s position of global leader in economic growth.

According to Singh, Guyana’s 36.4 per cent GDP growth in the first half of 2022, and projected annual growth of 56 per cent are reflective of the PPP/C Government’s policy stance and private sector investment.

Dr Singh said this 36.4 per cent growth rate was achieved despite the shocks faced by Guyana and the world.  

“The fact that we have been able to withstand the shocks and grow at the rate that we have been growing is most commendable.

“As you know, we attach the strongest level of importance as a government, to the achievement of strong and sustainable economic growth but it’s also testimony to the efforts being made by the private sector to continue to invest and to expand, which they have been doing, in response to the policy environment that we have created,” the senior minister posited.

However, on a positive note, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its recent Report in September indicated that overall real GDP growth rate is projected to be 57.8 percent in 2022.     

Senior Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh had noted that upon the assumption to office by the President Irfaan Ali-led Government, the administration recognised the importance of a strong, diversified economic base and, as such, even in the early days of oil production, placed the highest level of importance on a resilient non-oil economy.

The aim, therefore, was to modernise the economy’s traditional pillars and catalyze a rapidly growing and highly competitive non-oil economy’. This is evident in the nation’s non-oil economic growth at the end of the first half. The continued growth projected for 2022 builds on the 4.6 percent growth recorded last year.  

 In its September 2022 Article IV Report, the IMF noted that following the pandemic-induced recession in 2020, and protracted political transition, non-oil economic growth recovered in 2021, despite being negatively impacted by floods.

As such, the IMF ‘welcomed the broad-based economic recovery in 2021, following a protracted political transition and the pandemic-induced recession in 2020, and the unprecedented high real GDP growth, supported by a steep rise in oil production and accommodative policies’.

In the IMF Report the significant decline in public debt and favorable debt dynamics were noted. “Staff welcomed the recent amendments to the NRF Act. The recent Amendments to the NRF Act set clear ceilings on withdrawals from the Fund for Budgetary spending and promote transparency in the management and use of oil resources. Staff praised the Authorities’ thorough review of the NRF Act before making amendments and the restraint in using any oil revenues before the passage of the Amendments”, the IMF Report stated. 

The IMF further encouraged Government to continue improving the targeting of social spending while it ‘commended the authorities efforts to ‘maintain financial stability and promote financial Inclusion as well its ‘progress in strengthening Guyana’s anti-corruption framework and fiscal transparency’ and for its ‘efforts to build resilience to climate change’ as put forward in its Low Carbon Development Strategy.