With continued dismal output in this year’s first crop, President Irfaan Ali on Tuesday challenged the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) to assume direct responsibility for the management of one of the country’s sugar estates as he says his administration is open to exploring different models.
The recommendation by the Head of State at the observance of the 78th anniversary of the Enmore Martyrs may have come as a result of him learning that once again key sugar estates have performed poorly.
Based on the figures from the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), seen by Kiskadee Watch, total sugar production for the first five months of 2026 stood at 19,031 tonnes, falling 10,345 tonnes below the budgeted target of 29,376 tonnes and achieving just 64.8% of the company’s production goal.
The President has repeatedly vowed that heads will roll at GuySuCo if production is not improved.
A breakdown of production by estate shows that only Uitvlugt surpassed its target, while Albion, Rose Hall and Blairmont all recorded significant shortfalls.
Albion Estate produced 8,127 tonnes against a target of 11,280 tonnes, a deficit of 3,153 tonnes, or 72% of its target.
Rose Hall Estate produced 2,785 tonnes compared with a budgeted 5,869 tonnes, missing its target by 3,083 tonnes and achieving just 47.5% of the planned output.
Blairmont Estate recorded production of 3,303 tonnes against a target of 7,511 tonnes, a shortfall of 4,208 tonnes, or 44% of the budgeted figure.
Uitvlugt Estate was the lone bright spot, producing 4,816 tonnes, exceeding its target of 4,716 tonnes by 100 tonnes, or 102.1% of budget.
The figures indicate that GuySuCo remains significantly behind its production projections heading into the second half of the year, with the industry’s largest deficits coming from the Blairmont and Albion estates.
Contacted by Kiskadee Watch on these poor figures, We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) MP and former GuySuCo executive Vishnu Panday, as he has done in the past, reiterated that the output was due to the continued politicisation of the industry.
“No major work has been done on any of the factories, so they continue to perform poor in terms of their efficiencies,” Panday told this publication.
In addition, he stated that the machinery to cut cane was not adequate during the crop time and that is because of poor logistical arrangements, untimely bidding for tenders and the denial of contracts to locals which would allow them to make investments on mechanical harvesters.
On top of that, GuySuCo does not own any mechanical harvesters. In these times when production is low, they rent it and that is where the bugbear comes, Panday said.
He said the last time the corporation purchased a harvester was over a decade and a half ago.
Additionally, he pointed out that no one will invest in purchasing harvesters if they do not have a guarantee for years of employment.
And while the government and the corporation may excuse poor production on heavy rainfall, Panday said that is far from the truth.
“The truth is, given the non-rainfall days for harvesting the production was still poor,” Panday asserted.
Panday said the only reason the government continues to plug big sums into the industry is to hold on to it at any cost because of the electoral votes it generates.
During his maiden presentation on the 2026 budget earlier this year, Panday had argued that governments on both sides of the aisle, referring to PPP/C and PNC/APNU+AFC had failed the sugar industry and accused successive administrations of running it into the ground through political appointments and poor management.
He had traced sugar production figures over decades, noting that prior to nationalisation in 1976, Guyana produced over 360,000 tonnes of sugar, while production had collapsed to under 50,000 tonnes in recent years. “In 2022, this country produced just over 47,000 tonnes of sugar,” he noted. “That is not progress. That is devastation,” he had stressed. These low figures followed the closure of three estates.
He argued that after Booker Tate took over management of the sugar industry in 1990, it rebounded with production increasing to 331,000 tonnes of sugar. Once the PPP/C took over the management of the Guyana Sugar Corporation, sugar production fell again, he had charged.
“Like the PNCR, the PPP took over the industry; they flooded the industry with party loyalists. And from that 331,000 tonnes of sugar produced, you know where we are Mr. Speaker, in 2020, it produced 88,000 tonnes. In 2021, 58,000 tonnes were produced, 30,000 tonnes dropped immediately. And if that was not disgraceful, in the year 2022, it produced 47,000 tonnes of sugar,” the WIN MP had further said.
Involvement
Meanwhile, President Ali during his Tuesday address said the task of restoring the sugar sector could not be left solely to the management of the corporation but required the involvement of workers, unions and surrounding communities.
“The responsibility for reviving the sugar industry does not rest with management alone. It rests with all of us,” Ali said, noting that the industry supports not only estate workers but also businesses and communities that depend on sugar-related economic activity.
Referring to ongoing efforts to attract proposals for the revitalisation of estates, including Skeldon, Ali said GAWU was also being invited to play a more direct role in shaping the sector’s future.
“If you would like to take up the mantle of management and take one of the estates and make it a model, we give you that challenge openly,” he said. “Take one of the estates and manage it. We give you that opportunity with the workers so that we can have different models.”
He added that the government would support such an initiative and urged the union not to shy away from the opportunity.
Ali described sugar as a heritage industry that has long been central to Guyana’s rural economy. Despite years of financial and operational difficulties, he said the sector continues to provide livelihoods and remains important to many communities.
At the same time, the President expressed dissatisfaction with GuySuCo’s inability to consistently meet production targets. He said that management had been warned about the need for improved performance and accountability.
“I’ve demanded greater efficiency. I’ve demanded better results,” he said, while also calling on GAWU to strengthen its partnership with the corporation and avoid what he described as unnecessary industrial action. Workers at Albion and Rose Hall went on strike this week over retroactive pay.
According to Ali, the significant public resources being invested in the industry must produce measurable returns. He said changes at estate level were inevitable as government pursues reforms aimed at improving productivity and sustainability.
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