Guyana, its Foreign Policy, and the Path to Development

© 2014, The Round Table Ltd. Guyana is potentially on the threshold of great change. The growing importance of gold-mining and logging, and the rising hope that sizeable quantities of oil will soon be found should act as a catalyst for a dramatic improvement in Guyana’s level of development. However, these industries require responsible management and there are concerns that severe weaknesses in Guyana’s governance structures will place major constraints on its ability to develop in a sustainable way. The article gives an overview of Guyana’s pattern of economic development and the problems associated with key economic sectors. The article then considers how its quest for development is being enhanced and sometimes hindered by its expanding set of foreign relations at the regional, hemispheric and global levels. The article suggests that there is a real chance for Guyana to make a step-change in its level of development, but important internal reforms and a delicate foreign policy balancing act are required for these gains to be realised