Guyana’s growth trajectory continued in 2024 with an estimated Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of 43.6 per cent, up from the 33 per cent expansion in 2023.
This was reported on Friday by Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance and the Public Service, Dr Ashni Singh.
This overall GDP growth featured the expansion of the non-oil economy by 13.1 per cent, compared to 11.7 per cent in 2023. The development in the non-oil economy was driven primarily by increases in rice, other crops and bauxite production, as well as expansion in mining, quarrying, construction and the services sectors.
Minister Singh, speaking during his 2025 budget presentation themed ‘A secure, prosperous and sustainable Guyana’, noted that this growth occurred in the midst of global inflationary pressures.
Despite those challenges, he said, inflation remained subdued, with the 12-month rate estimated at 2.9 per cent.
“The growth in the overall economy reflects continued strong expansion in oil output. This highlights Guyana’s emergence as a key player in the global energy market, but also underscored the stellar successes being achieved in building a diversified economic base,” Singh said.
The minister said last year was a significant milestone in the country’s history, reflected in the progress recorded in key sectors.
Providing an overview of the macroeconomic developments that took shape last year, the senior minister disclosed that the agriculture, forestry and fishing sub-sectors grew by 11 per cent, while the rice growing sub-sector expanded by 9.3 per cent.
The sugar sub-sector contracted by 21.8 per cent. The forestry sub-sector and other crops sub-sector grew by 4.6 per cent and 10.9 per cent respectively. The livestock industry also recorded notable growth with a 24.6 per cent increase.
For the extractive industries, the mining and quarrying sector expanded by 55.9 per cent, while the manufacturing sector expanded by 13.5 per cent.
The services and construction sectors expanded by 7.4 per cent and 30.8 per cent, respectively.
Meanwhile, private sector credit also increased by 19.8 per cent last year, reflecting the government’s commitment to creating a conducive environment.
Singh noted that the overall growth in private sector credit increased almost fourfold to 72.3 per cent between 2020 and 2024.
Moreover, the oil and gas industry expanded by 57.7 per cent in 2024, with a production of 225.4 million barrels of oil.
SOURCE: CMC
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