Opposition Parliamentarian, Amanza Walton-Desir has expressed doubt in the Government of Guyana (GoG) and the local private sector’s ability to execute a mammoth $218B in capital expenditure being envisaged by the administration in its $553B 2022 national budget. She raised matters about capacity and issues with the global supply chain, among others.
“Out of a budget (proposed) of $553B, the PPP chose to spend $218B on capital expenditure, an approximate increase of over 109 per cent. Mr Speaker, the issue that arises here immediately is capacity. It is well known, well established, that neither the Central Government nor the Private Sector have the capacity – neither of them has the capacity to execute such a massive increase in this programme,” the Shadow Foreign Affairs Minister said this morning in the House.
The MP added that this lack of capacity is exacerbated by the challenges imposed upon the nation and the world by the COVID-10 pandemic. She noted also, the fractured supply chain being a major factor in affecting works. Indeed, issues with the supply chain are at the root of woes existing in the country, resulting in significant price increase at the markets, with many lamenting the apparent increase in cost of living. Walton-Desir said that challenges are bound to occur when Guyana imports materials to execute projects.
She also referenced a purported International Monetary Fund (IMF) Assessment on Guyana’s Public Sector’s Management that shines light on Guyana’s estimated 41% deficiency gap in executing projects. She noted that when that assessment is applied to the $218B, it “means” that $89B will be “wasted” due to weaknesses in budgeting, planning, appraisals, selection, procurement and the actual execution of capital projects.
