$61B in supplementary spending approved by National Assembly

…$1.5B for GuySuCo; Public Works Ministry gets $33.3B

The sum of $61 billion in supplementary funds for the period ending December 31, 2023 was approved on Wednesday by the Government in the National Assembly, in a session that went on well into the night.
Among the allocations passed was $5 billion for the gas-to-energy project, $663 million for the Linden Electricity Company and $264.7 million for the Lethem Power Company. Monies were also passed for additional resources to support the National Data Management Authority (NDMA) due to expanded work programmes, the Government noted.

Under the Local Government and Regional Development Ministry, $300 million for additional funds to support Local Authority Areas (LAAs) and $250 million to expand targeted initiatives were included under line item ‘regional economic transformation’.
In the Agriculture Ministry, $4 billion will go to the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) for urgent Drainage and Irrigation (D&I) works in Regions two, three, five and 10. Meanwhile, $100 million has been provided for the Guyana Livestock Development Authority (GLDA) for pasture development in those regions as well.
The sum of $1.5 billion has also been allocated to the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), for additional resources to rehabilitate 1572 hectares of temporary abandoned lands at Albion, Blairmont, Rose Hall and Uitvlugt Estates.

Public Works
With a provision of $33.3 billion, the Public Works Ministry received the largest supplementary provision. According to the estimates, $25 billion will go towards the construction and rehabilitation of community roads and drainage works, while $1 billion will go towards urban roads and drainage and a further $1.5 billion was allocated for the construction and rehabilitation of hinterland roads.
Monies were also allocated for wharves and stellings. Specifically, $2.5 billion for advancing works at Kingston goods wharf and the Kumaka, Morawhanna and Port Kaituma stellings. A sum of $568.7 million has also been allocated for critical rehabilitation works on pontoons for the Demerara Harbour Bridge.
Meanwhile, $2.1 billion was allocated for the construction of the Wismar bridge, though some confusion ensued when Public Works Minister Juan Edghill said that the bridge was being fully funded from local funds.
Opposition parliamentarian Annette Ferguson referenced previous reports that a US$150 million loan had been signed with Saudi Arabia, to not only finance the construction of the new Wismar Bridge, but also the construction of 1000 young professional homes in Linden.

It was subsequently clarified by Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh that access roads will have to be built on both sides of the Wismar bridge and as such, the recent loan agreement signed with the Saudi Fund for Development will go towards that. However, local funds will indeed be used for the actual bridge, out of a desire to fast track the work.
“Loan agreements totalling US$150 million were signed with the Saudi Fund for Development. And those financing agreements were tabled… and the language in and surrounding the financing agreements did make reference to both housing developments and the Wismar bridge. All of this is factually correct. It is a fact that we have secured financing to construct the bridge and associated works. We are, in fact, in the process of concluding a contract with the contractor for the actual bridge.”
“And the honourable member Mr Edghill was correct that the actual construction of the bridge, we anticipate being financed out of local resources. We want as a Government to move forward as quickly as possible, with the completion of this bridge. It is for that reason we’re moving with alacrity… so there’s no great mystery here,” Dr Singh said.

Education, Housing and Home Affairs
A sum of $2 billion was allocated to the Education Ministry, for the rehabilitation and upgrade of schools as well as the purchase of school supplies, while the Housing and Water Ministry will get $500 million for expanded work in vulnerable communities.
The Health Ministry got an allocation of $1 billion to complete urgent rehabilitation and upgrade of health facilities, while the Home Affairs Ministry got $1.4 billion to purchase additional equipment and vehicles, and upgrade Police stations and the expanded work programmes.
Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn explained that the Force’s expanded work programmes included the support it gave to Local Government Elections (LGE) 2023 and the recently-concluded Tradewinds exercises. The Guyana Defence Force meanwhile received an allocation of $638.1 million.
The regional administrations of Regions Two ($45.4 million), Three ($688.2 million), Four ($273.8 million), Five ($116.6 million), Seven ($219.5 million), Eight ($32.9 million) and 10 ($269.5 million) received current allocations from the financial paper.