Money must be prioritised – Jordan on stimulus for economy

…says prepping facilities for COVID-19, other measures take precedence

A number of countries have implemented stimulus packages for businesses and individuals to stay afloat during the coronavirus pandemic, but according to former Finance Minister Winston Jordan, the country’s scarce resources have to be prioritised for other purposes ahead of a stimulus.

Jordan was at the time participating in a Zoom interview conducted by the Department of Public Information (DPI), when he was asked about his thoughts on a stimulus package for Guyanese.
However, Jordan cited the several infrastructural expenses they will be incurring to combat COVID-19 directly. According to Jordan, these measures take precedence, considering Guyana’s scarce resources.
“Some people have suggested that the worst is yet to come. Hopefully, that is not so. But based on the rapidity with which the numbers have climbed within the last week and a half, we fear the worse. It’s [over 50] cases and as we begin our mass testing, this may very well increase significantly,” he said.
“So more and more our resources, slender as they are in the best of times, will have to be reprioritised to fighting this virus frontally. So, our attention is turned to that. We are looking for resources to assist in the public health sector.”
However, Jordan also explained that they are working to establish a database of the vulnerable people. He related that this database will include those who have lost employment and the self-employed.
“The [list of] vulnerable have expanded now. You have those who have lost employment. Those who may not have lost employment, but have lost significant parts of their income. You have the self-employed people, those who sell in front of the schools and various other places. Construction sites. You have the black pudding ladies. The itinerant vendors, those who walk around selling. Maybe even the touts at the bus market, a lot of buses aren’t running.”
There is also welcome news for nurses and doctors, as Jordan noted that Government will be looking into risk allowances for them. This is in light of the fact that they are essential, frontline workers in the coronavirus pandemic.
“We have other, COVID type expenditure. On the human side, for example, we have our doctors, our nurses, other health professionals who are on the frontline. They are facing grave risks where this is concerned. We have to look at things like risk allowances during this time, to help them face these risks,” Jordan explained.
“It is recognition that they are effacing serious issues there. So, we gotta find money to do that. Of course, we still have regular running costs. We have committed, publicly, that our public servants will be paid towards the end of the year. That is a cost that will be significant. But we feel towards the human part of it we must bear.”
Since coronavirus spread around the world, it has had a debilitating effect on the global economy and the way of life of millions. A case in point is the sharp reduction in demand for oil and the consequent slump in the oil price.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) had recently released an assessment in which it ranked Guyana among the few countries in the region least prepared to deal with the effects of the coronavirus epidemic, particularly the negative effects it will have on the economy and tourism.
In the assessment, the IMF rated countries in the Americas from red (least prepared) to green (most prepared). Countries like the United States and Canada were in the green zone. However, Guyana, Guatemala, Belize and Honduras were not so lucky.
Neighbouring Brazil was considered more prepared than average, while countries like Columbia were rated as less prepared. According to the IMF, the virus is likely to have immediate economic impacts in the region, including financial restrictions, declining commodity prices and reduced tourism.
Some measures have been taken by authorities in Guyana to slow the spread of the virus. These measures include a curfew, mandating that public transport slash the number of passengers they carry, closing schools and the Bank of Guyana interceding with local banks to make conditions favourable to allow customers to stay home and practice social distancing without a financial blowback.
In addition, the Finance Ministry had disbursed $120 million from the Consolidated Fund to the Ministry of Public Health. This money was expected to go towards purchasing medical equipment to outfit quarantine sites and to also procure masks and oxygen tanks.