Though international flights saw a tremendous decrease during the height of the pandemic due to flight restrictions, Guyanese authorities recently reported that the oil-producing State is witnessing a steady return of figures consistent with those prior to COVID-19 confirmation here.
Specifically, the Minister within the Ministry of Public Works, Deodat Indar made the foregoing known while delivering remarks at the Conference on International Air Transport Cooperation 2022 in Korea.
International traffic declined by 72% in 2020 and 47% in 2021 against 2019, but as of May 2022, Guyana recorded 95% of the pre-pandemic passenger numbers.
Indar anticipates that by the end of 2022, Guyana will have five percent more passengers than in 2019.
Meanwhile, he added that Guyana’s domestic aviation sector experienced a 46% and 30% drop in passenger movements in 2020 and 2021 respectively when compared to 2019. This sector is also seeing improvement, the Minister added.
Indar told participants that the Government of Guyana sees the aviation industry as very robust, and in anticipation of its rapid growth, it will continue investing in the sector.
“We are continuing to invest in this sector. While we have just completed the expansion of our main airport, the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA); works have already started on the design of a new terminal building and cold storage and packaging facility,” he disclosed.
