Guyana’s growth rate projected to jump to 38.5% in 2021

As Guyana transitions to oil and gas production by mid-2020, it is expected that the country will likely see reduced access to concessional resources from the multilateral development banks.

According to International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts, Guyana’s growth rate is expected to jump from 3.5 percent between 2017 to 2018 to 38.5 percent in 2021.
After a decade of robust economic performance, Guyana is poised to emerge as a significant oil producer by mid-2020.

Guyana’s institutional framework has not been able to translate economic returns into improved outcomes in human development, or an enhanced environment for the private sector, including as it relates to delivering critical infrastructure for supporting both. Over the medium term, Guyana is expected to undergo an important structural transformation.

According to the Inter-American Development Bank, Guyana would have to take urgent steps to properly manage the oil and gas industry with which it has no local experience. Several risks will need to be swiftly addressed including the continued vulnerability to commodity price shocks, and the adequate creation of new government structures to manage a hitherto unknown sector.

As a commodity producer-exporter, Guyana has historically had to grapple with low or fluctuating prices for its major exports such as rice, sugar, bauxite and gold.

Presently, Guyana is in the process of updating the legislative and regulatory framework for managing natural resource revenues. Preparation works have begun on the drafting of a Petroleum Commission Bill and a Sovereign Wealth Fund Act.