Govt to increase stipends for NDC, RDC Councillors within days

Local Government and Regional Development Minister Priya Manickchand has announced that the Government is set to implement significant increases in stipends for elected officials serving on Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) and Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs), with payments expected to begin within days.
Speaking on Thursday, the Minister said the increases, which were first announced in the 2026 National Budget, are now ready for implementation after the completion of the necessary administrative and financial approvals.
Under the revised payment structure, Chairpersons of the country’s 70 NDCs will see their monthly stipends increase from $10,000 to $50,000. Vice Chairpersons will receive $40,000, up from $5000, while Councillors will receive $30,000, compared to the previous $3000.
At the regional level, RDC Councillors will receive an increase from $30,000 to $50,000 per month.
“We’re about to give you these significant raises in stipends,” Minister Manickchand said, noting that the process took longer than anticipated because approvals from the Ministry of Finance were required before implementation.
She said the increases will benefit more than 1000 NDC Councillors, along with Chairpersons, Vice Chairpersons and RDC Councillors across the country.
According to the Minister, the improved stipends are intended to strengthen local Government by providing elected representatives with greater resources as they serve their communities.
“With more, our Councillors, Chairpersons and Vice Chairpersons will have more to give you, I hope, and so when much is given, much is expected,” she said, adding that the Government expects the enhanced compensation to contribute to more effective functioning of local democratic organs.
Manickchand said the payments should begin reaching NDCs’ and recipients’ homes “in a matter of days”.

Retroactive payments
Meanwhile, Region Four Regional Executive Officer Juan Edghill Jr announced that the RDC of Region Four implemented the increased stipends as soon as it was announced.
In a post on his social media page on Thursday, Edghill said the RDC approved retroactive payments to all Region Four Councillors from January to the present, reflecting the new stipend rates.
In 2025, municipalities and NDC received massive increases in subventions from the Government. Every NDC now receives $30 million as their new annual subvention, while each municipality now receives $50 million. Previously, NDCs received subventions of about $5 million, while municipalities received about $18 million.
When the increase was announced in 2025, Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, who was at the time meeting with some Councillors and other representatives of the 80 Local Authority Areas (LAAs) across Guyana at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC), Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown, had said that “we expect this money to be well-spent.”
“We want to equip you with the tools that ensure that going forward, apart from what we focus on at the national level, that you can deliver better services,” Jagdeo said.
Since taking office in 2020, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration has been injecting resources into the various local Government bodies to enhance their ability to service citizens.