Granger took office with $15B in gold; ends 1st term with less than $1B left – BoG
When the David Granger Administration took office in May 2015, the gold held in Guyana’s reserve was valued at $15 billion, according to figures released by the Bank of Guyana in its Statement of Assets and Liabilities published in the Official Gazette, on May 30, 2015.
President David Granger
In the latest Official Gazette—published on February 29, three days before General and Regional Elections on March 2—the gold reserve held less than $1 billion remaining. According to the bank of Guyana’s figures, when Guyanese went to the polls, the gold reserve was valued at $635 million.
Bank of Guyana had, last year, defended a decision to sell off portions of Guyana’s gold reserves, saying the move was reflective of “strategic trading”.
Central Bank at the time had said it trades gold and replenishes the stock based on market opportunities.
The bank noted that gold is not managed as an exclusive reserve asset for holding, but as part of a portfolio of assets.
Gold declarations for 2019 were recorded at 634,905 ounces when compared to 616,223 ounces in 2018.
Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo, only recently while on the campaign trail in Region 10, accused the current Administration of depleting hundreds of millions of dollars that was left in the country’s treasury and handed over to it in 2015, but there have been no developments to date that would account for the taxpayers’ dollars.
“Every agency that we left money in – it is now zero,” he said, as he singled out key revenue earner, the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC).
