Govt working to reduce poverty, bring more people into middle class – Jagdeo

– education, housing among strategies to make sure no one is left behind

With all the progress the government has made in providing jobs and educational opportunities for citizens, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo has acknowledged that more remains to be done to alleviate poverty and ensure more persons are brought into the middle class.
During his most recent press conference, the Vice President addressed the issue of job creation and poverty reduction. He noted that four years after the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C’s) return to office, government policies have aided in the creation of 60,000 more private sector jobs.
“When you assess us, and how people are today. So, in the private sector, you have about 60,000 more jobs. That means people are out there. The same people who are working, I’m so proud of them, like the Guyanese at the Starbucks. And stuff like that. They’re just putting in a lot of hard work. I go there and watch them. I’m very proud of them.”
“The Marriott. The place they said they would turn into a hospital. If you go in there, it’s mainly our people. They’re doing a great job. And they’re earning in many places like that. They ask where are the 60,000 jobs coming from. I can tell them,” Bharrat stated.
Jagdeo noted the effect having 60,000 more people working has had on the well-being of the population. He quantified their earning potential to be about $50 billion per year. Additionally, the increased wages in the public sector have to be accounted for.
“Then in the public sector alone, we have a $90 Billion per year increase in wages and salaries. So that alone. Imagine the disposable income available to our people. If we assess it at say $50 and $90 billion, you have now $140 billion per year in disposable income. that’s a lot of money.”
“That’s around US$700 million more in the pockets of our workers per year. I’m not speaking about the businessmen and how much money they’re making in profits. I’m just speaking about wages and salaries in people’s pockets,” Jagdeo added.
That being said, Jagdeo acknowledged that more work must be done to ensure those in poverty are not left behind. Instead, he noted the importance of providing them with opportunities so they can elevate themselves.
“I must confess, not everyone has benefitted from this. You do have poor people who do have a hard time. You do have a lot of poor people. But you have people who have moved into the middle class, because of the changes.”
“And our job now is to make sure that all of those who didn’t get the opportunities as yet, that we give them the opportunities through education, assistance with housing, to bring them up into the middle class.”
The PPP/C government has been working assiduously to make education more accessible to the wider population. Thousands of students including young adults, single parents, mothers, and fathers have graduated from various courses that the PPP/C government launched since taking office in 2020.
To date, billions of dollars have been pumped into the Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL) initiative which targets 35,000 students within the first five years in office. In June, it was announced that the Government had approved almost GOAL scholarships for this year representing the Administration’s continued efforts to ensure the country’s workforce and populace is better educated and skilled.
Already, the Government has surpassed its manifesto promise of providing 20,000 online scholarships. As of the end of 2023, 21,500 GOAL scholarships were distributed. Earlier this year, a second batch of students numbering 1712 graduated.
Meanwhile, the government is also on track to surpass its target for house lot distribution. Housing Minister Collin Croal has announced that 36,000 house lots have been allocated since 2020, and efforts are underway to hit 40,000 by year-end. A significant portion of these house lots have gone to low and moderate-income earners.
In line with its manifesto commitment to deliver 50,000 house lots by 2025, the government has allocated 6,300 lots this year, with a focus on Wales, Non-Pareil, and La Bonne Intention (LBI) developments.