Norton unveils People-Centred Development Strategy
concern that is not obvious to us in this budget as reflected in the massive spending on infrastructure with little regard for our people as will be shown later. Mr. Speaker, this budget fails to charter a course for a wider array of industries to contribute to our national income. Our People Centred Development Strategy will undertake that task since we are sanguine that a wider array of industries can contribute far more resources to allocate to the people’s development.”
He said, that industries such as other crops, construction, gold, real estate, administrative services, financial services, and the distributive trade are among the top 8 contributors to the country’s GDP, and though currently so placed, they have also changed positions. “Other Crops is now in second place while gold, which previously occupied second place, now sits in seventh place, rice manufacturing, which ranked 15th in 2019 ranked 19th in 2023, education which ranked 12th in 2019 ranked 15th in 2023, the redistribution in the ranking of many of our industries shows that some industries that were once significant players in our economy no longer hold that profile. There might be reasons other than the influences of oil and gas for the change in ranking, but it is clear that the affected industries must think of what the changes mean to their competitiveness and their future in this economy.”
He then argued that the budget has no measures to address this changed situation.
“More importantly, education which fell from 12th in 2019 to 15th in 2023 is a clear indication that human resource development is not given the focus it deserves.” As such, he said, that their People-Centred Development Strategy will significantly improve the education sector because “we believe that the development of human capital is critical to the success of any country’s development.”
Further, Norton said that for a country that relies heavily on foreign trade, “we must be concerned as to what the changes in our economy mean for the acquisition and distribution of foreign currency. The new concentration of our economy reveals that two industries, oil and gold, generated 94% of our foreign earnings in 2023.”
He said that according to existing data one can envisage oil exceeding the 90% share of foreign earnings that it was responsible for in 2023 in the not-too-distant future. “While we bask as a country in the financial glow of the oil industry, one must wonder what role the current policy on the management and use of foreign generated earnings might be playing in determining access to foreign currency for the business community and the wider society. This is another issue not addressed in this
Budget. We believe it is important and incumbent on the government to manage this situation properly so that our local private sector can access foreign exchange to grow their businesses.”
He then added, that “shortage of foreign currency should not abound in a country where export revenues have grown by over 700% in less than four years and its trade balance has shifted from a deficit in 2019 to a surplus of over US$6.5b in 2023.”
According to him, “By blindly supporting the investment priorities of the government, private sector entities might be serving as the architect of their own inability to access foreign currency to conduct their business. The government’s insistence that cement, sand, and stone must dominate the consumption pattern of the country ought to cause consternation among Guyanese. Our foreign exchange management must facilitate the development of the local private sector in the non-infrastructure sector.”
Meanwhile, further making the case for an APNU+AFC government, Norton said, that the PCDS will provide homes on a rent-to-own basis and “we will replicate the successes the PNC had when it produced houses in South Ruimveldt and other areas without putting the house owners at risk of losing those houses.”