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US$1 Billion Oil Revenue A Month: Why Are Guyanese Still Struggling?
By Darsh Khusial
News Americas, NY, NY, Tues. Sept. 22, 2026: Imagine that you recently received a promotion and suddenly began earning 12 times your previous salary. You would probably make sure that your family could afford nutritious meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You might decide to upgrade to a home with a garden where you could grow vegetables. You might even install proper floodlights so that your yard is well lit at night. When Guyana discovered oil in commercial quantities in May 2015, Guyanese hoped it would transform the country and improve their standard of living. Using production data from July 2026, Guyana is estimated to have produced about 27.5 million barrels of oil that month.
At an average Brent crude price of US$83.74 per barrel in July, the value of that production would have been approximately US$2.3 billion. Based on recent government statements, Guyana’s share has been estimated at 39.8% of oil revenues, plus a 2% royalty. On that basis, Guyana would have received roughly US$961 million from July’s production.
The average Brent crude price rose to approximately US$91 per barrel in August, although we do not yet have the final production figures for that month. With Brent prices now hovering above US$100 per barrel, let us assume that Guyana could receive approximately US$1 billion per month for the remainder of the year. For the purpose of this discussion, we will even ignore estimates that the spot price of Brent crude – the price paid for a barrel delivered today rather than at some future date – could be between US$120 and US$150.
To put US$1 billion per month into perspective, Guyana’s entire national budget in 2015 was approximately US$1 billion. That budget had to support the whole country, including education, healthcare, infrastructure, roads, public-sector salaries, and other government services. Now, approaching 12 years since the discovery of oil, Guyana can potentially receive from oil in a single month roughly what the entire country once relied upon for an entire year.
With such an extraordinary increase in national income, one would reasonably expect Guyana to be able to ensure that its people can at least afford to feed themselves properly. It has been reported that 58.5% of Guyanese live on US$6.85 per day or less. If we assume that Guyana has a population of approximately one million people, that would mean roughly 585,000 people are living at or below that level.
If the country is now receiving approximately US$1 billion per month from oil, that amount is equivalent to about US$57 per day for every one of those 585,000 citizens. Surely, even 1/3 that amount is enough to ensure a nutritious meal, 3 times a day, for each of those 585,000 living below the poverty line.
This raises an obvious question: if so many Guyanese still struggle to afford basic necessities such as food, where is all this new wealth going? It is difficult to argue that the money is being fully reflected in improvements to everyday life when citizens continue to experience frequent blackouts and teachers continue to raise concerns about receiving wages sufficient to maintain a decent standard of living while educating the nation’s children.
One possible warning sign is the allegation reported in sections of the media that some government officials have acquired property or accumulated assets that appear difficult to reconcile with their official salaries. Such allegations deserve proper scrutiny, evidence, and accountability. The deeper concern is that those entrusted with managing Guyana’s newfound wealth may be losing touch with the everyday reality faced by ordinary citizens.
What began in 2015 as a moment of enormous hope now raises serious questions about whether Guyana is beginning to experience the symptoms of the so-called “resource curse.” Ultimately, Guyana’s oil wealth belongs to the country and should be managed for the benefit of its people. Citizens elect politicians to serve the public interest – not to enrich themselves or allow the country’s natural-resource wealth to be squandered or misused.
If Guyana can now earn in one month what it once needed an entire year to generate, Guyanese are entitled to ask a very simple question: where is the money going, and why are so many people still struggling to meet their most basic needs?
EDITOR’S NOTE: Darsh Khusial is an executive of the Oil and Gas Governance Network (OGGN) Other executive members include Kenrick Hunte, Joe Persaud and Mike Persaud.
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Guyana Police Spy Chief Says He’s Unaware Of Derogatory Government Statements Against Mohameds As Defense Pushes Political Motivation Claim
By NAN Staff Writer
News Americas, NY, NY, Tues. Sept. 22, 2026: The extradition cases against Azruddin and Nazar Mohamed continued in the Georgetown magistrate court today as defense lawyers for the two businessmen worked to argue that the extradition request is politically motivated. The Guyana Police Force’s chief intelligence officer testified Tuesday that he was unaware of any adverse public statements against the Mohameds by top elected officials.
Senior Superintendent Prem Narine, head of the force’s Special Branch, told the extradition hearing before Chief Magistrate Judy Latchman that Azruddin Mohamed is a national security threat. But under cross-examination by defence lawyer Siand Dhurjon, he denied a series of questions and suggestions that he had heard President Irfaan Ali, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, or Attorney General Anil Nandlall make derogatory remarks calling the Mohameds criminals.
In Guyana and other current and former British colonies, the police Special Branch is responsible for national threat assessments, including monitoring political activity, industrial relations, and potential flashpoints for protest, as well as tracking positions taken by political parties in the media and at political meetings.
CROSS-EXAMINATION
Narine acknowledged under cross-examination that, as head of Special Branch, he keeps abreast of current events. But he maintained, “I am not aware,” that Ali, Jagdeo, or Nandlall had made adverse comments about the Mohameds. He said he reads newspapers and news on social media “sometimes,” and said he had never observed Ali or Jagdeo making such comments in the news.
He similarly said he was “not aware” of a statement by Foreign Affairs Minister Hugh Todd alleging “collusion” between the Mohameds and ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Dhurjon pressed Narine directly on his credibility. “You are not being honest with this court?” Dhurjon asked.
“I am being honest with the court,” Narine replied. “You are very well aware of the statements vilifying the Mohameds by our leaders in the government,” Dhurjon said. “I am not,” Narine answered.
The Special Branch head also said he was unaware that Azruddin Mohamed’s own platform had criticized the government, though he acknowledged that Mohamed contested last year’s elections as an opposition candidate and that his We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) party won 16 seats in the National Assembly.
Narine also defended his decision to destroy three books containing notes made in the course of his duties, telling the court that he believed he was required to do so under the United Kingdom’s Official Secrets Act. Narine, the prosecution’s second witness, has testified about his role in collecting and presenting documents connected to the United States extradition request, obtaining the arrest warrants and executing those warrants against the Mohameds on October 31, 2025.
Dhurjon returned to the issue of the books Narine had previously acknowledged destroying by fire, questioning him about their contents and the nature of the information he recorded. Narine identified one of the destroyed books as his personal diary containing personal notes, while referring to the other two as books in which he made records.
The extradition proceedings against the opposition leader of Guyana continues
Azruddin and Nazar Mohamed are already sanctioned by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control over alleged evasion of more than US$50 million in taxes tied to the export of over 10,000 kilograms of gold. The US is seeking their extradition to face trial on charges of wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering.
The extradition hearing, which has stretched nearly a year and been repeatedly delayed by defence lawyers’ unavailability and related court matters, continues. While the Magistrates’ Court continues hearing testimony and managing evidence disclosures, a final ruling on extradition remains legally stayed pending the outcome of the constitutional appeal scheduled for October 13, 2026.
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Ferraris In Georgetown, Sewage In The Canals: Guyana Oil Boom Leaves Many Behind
By News Americas Staff Writer
News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Tues. Sept. 22, 2026: Guyana’s economy grew 33% in the first half of 2026 – the fastest of any economy in the world – driven by a Guyana oil windfall now estimated at $6.5 billion for the year, more than double what was forecast in January. But a New York Times investigation published September 19 finds that the boom sits uneasily alongside raw sewage in Georgetown’s canals, families crammed into flood-prone housing, and lingering fury over a ferry disaster that killed roughly 100 people in July – the country’s deadliest event since the 1978 Jonestown tragedy.
The Times, reporting from Georgetown, described a capital transformed by sudden wealth: Ferraris and Lamborghinis moving through traffic on narrow roads, new steakhouses serving imported Wagyu beef, and international DJs flown in for music festivals. Guyana’s per capita income now stands at roughly $32,000 – higher than every other country in Latin America, including Chile and Uruguay – and the country’s per capita oil reserves are estimated to be the second-highest in the world, after Kuwait, according to the report. Exxon’s oil discovery in these waters more than a decade ago ranks among this century’s most significant finds, catapulting Guyana, a former British colony with 1 million inhabitants, into the world’s fastest-growing economy.
But many ordinary Guyanese say that wealth isn’t reaching them. The Times cited rising inflation, a housing shortage, and “robberies at gunpoint” as common conditions in a capital that “does not feel like it is suddenly turning into an advanced economy,” despite the World Bank classifying Guyana as a high-income country.
The US warns Americans to reconsider travel to Guyana due to crime.
“Violent crime is common, especially at night. Crimes include murder and armed robbery. Local police often lack the resources to respond effectively to serious criminal incidents,” a State Department warning issued on August 26th states.
Over 30 remain missing after the MV Barima ferry capsized off Guyana’s coast on July 18th, as officials deny overload claims and the opposition demands answers amid Guyana oil wealth.
That disconnect became a flashpoint after July’s ferry disaster. At vigils and protests following the sinking, demonstrators asked how such a tragedy could happen in the world’s fastest-growing economy – and pointed out that its victims were among those still struggling to get by while government coffers filled with oil revenue.
“We’re sick of hearing about a boom that means nothing to most Guyanese,” Romola Lucas, a lawyer who was arrested and accused of unlawful assembly after demanding accountability from officials over the disaster, told the Times.
Economist Thomas Singh, of the University of Georgetown, told the paper the pace of Georgetown’s redevelopment – with much of the city’s historic wooden architecture being razed for concrete high-rises – compounds the sense of dislocation: “The sheer ugliness of it all is what gets to me.”
Government officials and some business leaders defend the trajectory. Gerry Gouveia Jr., chairman of Guyana’s Private Sector Commission, told the Times that legislation requiring foreign energy companies to hire local businesses and workers, along with a sovereign wealth fund with withdrawal limits, positions Guyana to avoid the “resource curse” that has plagued other oil-rich nations. President Irfaan Ali has said the economic boom will benefit “every household” and that the government is working to shield citizens from inflation. Guyana’s government did not respond to the Times’ request for comment.
The stakes extend beyond Guyana’s borders. The country has become one of Exxon Mobil’s main growth engines as the Trump administration seeks greater U.S. control over Western Hemisphere energy resources, even as Guyana’s territorial dispute with Venezuela over the oil-rich Essequibo region escalates, with a ruling from the International Court of Justice expected by early 2027.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This story draws on reporting by Simon Romero and Rebecca F. Elliott of the New York Times, published September 19, 2026. Read their full investigation at nytimes.com.
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