According to the ministry of finance’s recently released Mid-Year Report 2022, Guyana recorded an overall real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 36.4 percent in the first half of the year, with the non-oil economy growing by 8.3 percent, reflecting government’s supportive policy stance.

The outlook for the second half continues to be favourable. For the full year, real GDP growth in 2022 is now projected at 56 percent overall, and non-oil GDP growth at 9.6 percent, maintaining Guyana’s position of global leader in economic growth.   

“Led by president Mohamed Ali and fueled by the rapid economic growth, we have embarked on a period of rapid transformation, and our Government has laid out a master plan for the rapid development and transformation of Guyana. More importantly, we have demonstrated the capacity and commitment to working assiduously to make this vision a reality so that benefits can redound to citizens in the shortest possible time,” Minister of Finance Dr Ashni Singh indicated.

Dr Singh said that the aim was to modernise the economy’s traditional pillars and catalyze a rapidly growing and highly competitive non-oil economy.

• The agriculture, forestry and fishing sector is estimated to have expanded by 10.9 percent in the first six months of 2022
• The mining and quarrying sector is estimated to have grown by 64.6 percent
• The petroleum sector expanded by an estimated 73.5 percent, with 34.6 million barrels of oil produced in the first half of the year
• The bauxite industry – 9 percent
• The service industries – 7.6 percent
• The construction sector – 4 percent

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has exacerbated supply disruptions to commodity markets, resulting in surging commodity prices, the effects of which are being felt globally. Guyana has not been spared. Consumer prices were 4.9 percent higher than levels recorded at the end of 2021 and this was due largely to higher food and energy prices.

Given the existing geopolitical tensions globally, inflation is now projected to be 5.8 percent in 2022.

During the first six months of the year, government had five lifts of profit oil from the two producing FPSOs. Further, government received US$307 million in revenue from their share of profit oil, along with royalties to the tune of US$37.1 million, in the first half. The cumulative balance on the NRF, inclusive of interest income, was US$753.3 million, after withdrawing US$200 million in May.

Government anticipates 13 lifts of profit oil for 2022, and subject to the evolution of world market oil prices, now projects US$1.1 billion from the sale of the country’s share of profit oil, and US$147.7 million in royalties.