Member of:
ACP, C, CARICOM, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, GATT, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LAES, LORCS, NAM, OAS,
UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WMO
Diplomatic representation:
Ambassador Dr. Cedric Hilburn GRANT; Chancery at 2490 Tracy Place NW,
Washington, DC 20008; telephone (202) 265-6900; there is a Guyanese
Consulate General in New York
US:
Ambassador George JONES; Embassy at 99-100 Young and Duke Streets,
Georgetown; telephone [592] (2) 54900 through 54909
Flag:
green with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) superimposed
on a long yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow black border between the red
and yellow, and a narrow white border between the yellow and the green
:Guyana Economy
Overview:
Guyana is one of the world's poorest countries with a per capita income less
than one-fifth the South American average. After growing on average at less
than 1% a year in 1986-87, GDP dropped by 5% a year in 1988-90. The decline
resulted from bad weather, labor trouble in the canefields, and flooding and
equipment problems in the bauxite industry. Consumer prices rose about 100%
in 1989 and 75% in 1990, and the current account deficit widened
substantially as sugar and bauxite exports fell. Moreover, electric power is
in short supply and constitutes a major barrier to future gains in national
output. The government, in association with international financial
agencies, seeks to reduce its payment arrears and to raise new funds. The
government's stabilization program - aimed at establishing realistic
exchange rates, reasonable price stability, and a resumption of growth -
requires considerable public administrative abilities and continued patience
by consumers during a long incubation period. In 1991, buoyed by a recovery
in mining and agriculture, the economy posted 6% growth, according to
official figures. A large volume of illegal and quasi- legal economic
activity is not captured in estimates of the country's total output.
GDP:
exchange rate conversion - $250 million, per capita $300; real growth rate
6% (1991 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
75% (1990)
Unemployment rate:
12-15% (1990 est.)
Budget:
revenues $126 million; expenditures $250 million (1990 est.)
Exports:
$189 million (f.o.b., 1990 est.)
commodities:
bauxite, sugar, gold, rice, shrimp, molasses, timber, rum
partners:
UK 31%, US 23%, CARICOM 7%, Canada 6% (1988)
Imports:
$246 million (c.i.f., 1991)
commodities:
manufactures, machinery, food, petroleum
partners:
US 33%, CARICOM 10%, UK 9%, Canada 2% (1989)
External debt:
$2.0 billion, including arrears (1990)
Industrial production:
growth rate - 12.0% (1990 est.); accounts for about 11% of GDP
Electricity:
252,500 kW capacity; 647 million kWh produced, 863 kWh per capita (1991)
Industries:
bauxite mining, sugar, rice milling, timber, fishing (shrimp), textiles,
gold mining
Agriculture:
most important sector, accounting for 24% of GDP and about half of exports;
sugar and rice are key crops; development potential exists for fishing and
forestry; not self-sufficient in food, especially wheat, vegetable oils, and
animal products
Economic aid:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $116 million; Western (non-US)
countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $325 million;
Communist countries 1970-89, $242 million
Currency:
Guyanese dollar (plural - dollars); 1 Guyanese dollar (G$) = 100 cents
:Guyana Economy
Exchange rates:
Guyanese dollars (G$) per US$1 - 124.1 (March 1992) 111.8 (1991), 39.533
(1990), 27.159 (1989), 10.000 (1988), 9.756 (1987)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
:Guyana Communications
Railroads:
187 km total, all single track 0.914-meter gauge
Highways:
7,665 km total; 550 km paved, 5,000 km gravel, 1,525 km earth, 590 km
unimproved
Inland waterways:
6,000 km total of navigable waterways; Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo
Rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km,
respectively
Ports:
Georgetown
Civil air:
3 major transport aircraft
Airports:
54 total, 49 usable; 5 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways
over 3,659 m; none with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 13 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications:
fair system with radio relay network; over 27,000 telephones; tropospheric
scatter link to Trinidad; broadcast stations - 4 AM, 3 FM, no TV, 1
shortwave; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
:Guyana Defense Forces
Branches:
Guyana Defense Force (GDF; includes Coast Guard and Air Corps), Guyana
Police Force (GPF), Guyana People's Militia (GPM), Guyana National Service
(GNS)
Manpower availability:
males 15-49, 196,066; 149,045 fit for military service
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $5.5 million, 6% of GDP (1989 est.)
:Haiti Geography