GEORGETOWN – Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh has moved to reset public expectations around cash grants, making it clear that while direct payments to citizens will continue, they are only one piece of a much broader economic strategy aimed at long-term prosperity, self-reliance, and wealth creation.
Speaking in a preview of an interview set to air on The Starting Point podcast, Dr. Singh stressed that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) administration is not abandoning cash support, but neither is it building national policy around handouts alone.
“We have said that we’re going to continue to provide support and targeted support to the Guyanese population, but it has to be a comprehensive range of policies,” Singh said, noting that this position has been consistently articulated by the party’s leadership.
His comments come amid heightened public debate and political pressure over cash transfers, with some citizens and opposition voices framing direct payments as the central test of whether oil wealth is reaching ordinary households. Singh acknowledged that cash grants have played a meaningful role in easing immediate financial pressures, particularly during periods of rising living costs.
“We introduced cash grants, and over the course of time we will provide cash grants to the Guyanese population,” he said. “But that will certainly not be the only means through which we will deliver upliftment and improvement to the lives of the Guyanese people.”
The Finance Minister underscored that the government’s core objective is empowerment rather than dependency, arguing that sustainable prosperity cannot rest on periodic payouts alone.
“What we want ultimately is for every single Guyanese person to be able to take care of themselves,” Singh explained. “To have the right skills, to earn a good-quality job, and not only meet daily needs, but to build household and individual wealth.”
Since returning to office in 2020, the PPP/C government has rolled out an expansive package of relief measures, combining direct cash support with structural cost-of-living reductions. These have included a one-off $100,000 cash grant to adults, targeted assistance for pensioners and persons with disabilities, and relief for farmers and small businesses.
At the same time, the administration has maintained a no-new-taxes policy, removed or reduced VAT on a range of essential food items and agricultural inputs, raised the income tax threshold, reduced fuel taxes, and implemented electricity and water relief measures. Education and housing initiatives, including uniform grants, free tertiary education, and land and housing allocations, have also formed part of the government’s wider strategy.
According to Singh, these interventions are designed to ensure that national growth translates into tangible improvements at the household level.
“We have said on repeated occasions that our objective is for national prosperity to be translated into community, household, and individual prosperity,” he said.
Within that framework, cash grants remain a support mechanism rather than the centrepiece of economic policy.
“Cash grants will be part of a much bigger and wider range of policies,” Singh reiterated.
The Finance Minister’s remarks signal a deliberate effort by the government to frame cash transfers as a bridge rather than a destination, as Guyana’s oil-fuelled economy continues to expand.
While immediate relief remains on the table, Singh made clear that the administration’s long-term vision is focused on skills, employment, ownership, and wealth generation, positioning Guyanese not as recipients of state generosity, but as active participants in the country’s economic transformation.
