Introduction
In the previous column in which I examined whether Guyana was prepared for First Oil in 2020, I wrote that the situation is not irretrievable but that “there need[ed] to be manpower changes and more leadership from the President.” I suggested that President Granger needed “to take charge before it is too late.”
As if on cue, the President was reported on the same day expressing a high level of confidence that “by the end of August or thereabouts the Guyanese people will see a Department of Energy with which they are satisfied”. This of course is not the first time that the President had set a timeline for the development of the sector and one recalls that very confidently on 11 April of this year the President had indicated that “by the first of May there will be some further announcement but right now the preparatory work is being done.”
Anyone familiar with management knows only too well of the consequences of deadlines and critical activities not met and the challenges which they later pose. At a talk I gave to an enthusiastic and engaged group of Guyanese in London last week, I identified some of the critical matters to be addressed and their current state.