A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) yesterday raised questions about the Government’s borrowing and spending strategy.
APNU, in a response to the Government’s 2026 Mid-Year Report, said the debt increase took the total public and publicly guaranteed debt from US$7.743 billion at the end of 2025 to US$8.573 billion by June 2026.
The coalition, at a press conference, said the increase in debt must be examined against Guyana’s expanding oil revenues and the Government’s continued borrowing to finance development projects. “Oil wealth must build a stronger productive economy and better living standards, not merely larger budgets and larger debts,” APNU said.
The Central Government’s deficit after grants rose from G$35.9 billion in the first half of 2025 to G$105.6 billion in the corresponding period of 2026, according to figures cited by APNU. Net external borrowing increased from G$19.1 billion to G$71.4 billion, while net domestic borrowing rose from G$16.8 billion to G$34.3 billion.
APNU also pointed to a widening projected annual deficit, which increased from G$448.9 billion to G$503.8 billion, while projected net domestic borrowing rose by 36.4 per cent, from G$150.6 billion to G$205.5 billion.
The coalition is demanding that Government explain why the financing gap has widened and identify the measurable returns expected from the additional borrowing. The increase in borrowing has also been accompanied by higher interest costs, with APNU noting that the first-half interest expenditure rose 52.7 per cent, from G$9 billion in 2025 to G$13.8 billion in 2026. “Interest absorbs money that cannot be spent again on wages, farm protection or public services,” the coalition said.
The Mid-Year Report itself identifies exchange-rate and interest-rate exposure as risks requiring monitoring, particularly as external borrowing and reliance on short-term domestic securities increase.
Despite the rise in debt, the Government has maintained that Guyana’s debt remains sustainable. The 2026 Budget stated that total public and publicly guaranteed debt stood at about US$7.7 billion at the end of 2025, with the debt-to-GDP ratio at 28.6 per cent.
The latest debt figures come as the Government projects a substantial increase in petroleum revenues. Petroleum revenue deposits into the Natural Resource Fund are now projected at approximately US$6.498 billion for 2026, 136.8 per cent above the amount projected when the 2026 Budget was prepared.
APNU said the increased oil revenues should strengthen the case for a transparent approach to borrowing and saving rather than simply allowing debt to expand. It also called for consideration of using the Natural Resource Fund for equity investment and for building inter-generational wealth.
The coalition further said petroleum, gas and support services accounted for 78.9 per cent of real GDP during the first half of 2026, compared with 74.4 per cent during the same period last year. Crude oil also accounted for 92.9 per cent of merchandise export earnings, it said.
While the economy expanded by 33.3 per cent during the first half, APNU pointed out that non-oil growth slowed to 10.1 per cent, from 14 per cent during the first half of 2025.
Manufacturing
The coalition highlighted an even sharper slowdown in manufacturing, where growth fell from 26.9 per cent to 3 per cent, while services growth declined from 8.4 per cent to 7.2 per cent. Construction continued to expand strongly at 24.7 per cent, although this was slower than the 29.9 per cent recorded during the corresponding period of 2025.
APNU also raised concerns about agriculture, which it said contracted by 0.5 per cent, with other crops declining by 6.4 per cent.
The coalition said the decline included falls in cole crops (cruciferous vegetables) of 19.1 per cent, spices of 17.7 per cent, beans and cereals of 5.7 per cent and vegetables of 4.2 per cent.
It acknowledged the Mid-Year Report’s attribution of crop losses partly to prolonged above-normal rainfall, but said weather-related losses should prompt greater investment in drainage, irrigation and other measures to protect farmers against both flooding and drought.
APNU further pointed to a 3.1 per cent decline in outstanding agricultural credit between December 2025 and June 2026, despite total private-sector credit increasing by 11.5 per cent.
The coalition is also calling attention to downward revisions in several non-oil growth forecasts. The full-year non-oil growth forecast was reduced from 10.8 per cent to 10.2 per cent, while the forecast for agriculture, forestry and fishing was cut from 7.6 per cent to 2.9 per cent.
APNU stressed that the revised figures do not represent cuts to annual spending allocations but said the changes warrant an explanation of the assumptions and implementation challenges behind the 2026 Budget.
The coalition also raised concerns about workers’ purchasing power, pointing to a 4.4 per cent increase in consumer prices between December 2025 and June 2026 and a 6.7 per cent increase in food prices.
It said Central Government employment costs increased by 18.8 per cent to G$77.8 billion during the first half, but cautioned that this did not mean every public servant received an equivalent salary increase.
APNU is calling for collective bargaining, published salary scales and a multi-year wage policy linked to the cost of living and public-service needs.
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