By Marvin Cato | HGPTV Nightly News.
Cash transfers, according to Minister of Natural Resources Vickram Bharrat, are a failed model that cannot work in Guyana or elsewhere.
Speaking on the programme Starting Point over the weekend, Minister Bharrat dismissed the proposal of direct cash handouts from oil revenues, stressing that such an approach is unsustainable and harmful to long-term development.
“Cash transfer, now it’s a failed model. It’s a model that does not work in any part of the world,” Bharrat stated.
He noted that many of those pushing for such transfers are members of the diaspora, while Guyanese at home should trust the government’s strategy of investing in education, infrastructure, and job creation instead of short-term payouts.
Bharrat argued that overreliance on cash transfers could discourage education and professional growth, while paving the way for foreign dominance in the workforce and local business.
However, it is worth noting that Alaska in the United States has a longstanding model where oil revenues are paid directly as annual dividends to residents, something critics point out as evidence that cash transfer systems can work in specific contexts.
Still, Bharrat maintained that Guyana must focus on sustainable investments rather than handouts to secure long-term prosperity.
