Over the years, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has been actively involved in assisting Guyana in the strengthening of citizen security, promoting self-reliance financing, and supporting resilience within national institutions and communities, among others. The Agency’s current goal under the United States’ Caribbean Basin Security Initiative is ‘to promote a safe, prosperous and resilient Caribbean region that supports its vulnerable populations, withstands external shocks, and promotes accountable institutions, economic development, and private sector led growth’.
In today’s article, we provide a summary of the findings and recommendations contained in the report titled “Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance Assessment: Guyana” dated August 2021 that was commissioned by the USAID.
Terms of reference and methodology
The assessment was undertaken by a team of independent experts with the following terms of reference: (1) To assess the political change and democratization in Guyana during the period 2016 to 2021; and (2) To develop strategic and programmatic recommendations to address the major barriers to the consolidation of democracy. It was based on a consideration of the five elements of democracy, human rights and governance: competition and political accountability; consensus; inclusion; government responsiveness and effectiveness; and rule of law and human rights.
The assessment team collected data mainly through a review of relevant literature relating to electoral system reforms, public integrity institutions, civil society and private sector, and economic growth projections. Additionally, the team conducted 92 interviews, including 29 in five Regions, and held meetings with USAID staff in Guyana.
Main changes since the last assessment
The report cited the four major changes that took place since the last assessment in 2016:
(a) Discovery of substantial offshore oil and natural gas deposits that has the potential of transforming Guyana’s economy and the country’s ability to achieve national development objectives;
(b) Disputed outcome of the March 2020 national elections that led to five-month stalemate and a refusal by the opposition to recognize the legitimacy of the new government;
(c) The holding of local elections in 2016 and 2018 that was characterized by low voter turnout. Political polarization of governing issues by the two major political parties prevented attempts at decentralization of government services and empowering local officials; and
(d) Negative impact relating to crime and security arising from both external and internal drivers, such as migrants from Venezuela, international drug and weapons trafficking, COVID-19 pandemic political polarization, and lack of national consensus and inclusivity.
Overall assessment
The assessment team found problems in all five elements of DRG, the most critical being in the areas of competition and political accountability, consensus and inclusion. The overall conclusion is that the lack of consensus and inclusion is preventing Guyana from having a common vision of the country’s future. The two main political parties – the PPP/C and the APNU+AFC – need to find a way to have a functioning democracy based on power-sharing rather than a “winner takes all” mentality.
Poor government performance, lack of responsiveness and inclusion, and opaque policymaking processes occur at all levels.
Detailed findings
Competition and political accountability
The high centralization of political power in the executive branch of government reinforces one-party rule that is dominated by a single ethnic group. This institutionalized concentration of power by ‘ethnically identified elites’ perpetuates political polarization and reduces incentives for compromise and cooperation with other stakeholders. Limited competition and political accountability also exacerbate the lack of consensus about the future direction of the country.
The electoral system encourages legislators to be more accountable to party leaders rather than to the electorate. Government accountability depends a great deal on how electoral reform is handled and whether meaningful steps are taken to empower local officials. The capacity of GECOM to serve as a neutral and effective body to oversee various aspects of the electoral system was called into question in the 2020 national and regional elections. Guyanese on both sides of the political divide believe the integrity of GECOM has been severely compromised.
Indigenous voters and small parties may become key to the formation of governing coalitions. Previous generations of Guyanese emigrated because they were not born into the families who control jobs and opportunities. The current generation, however, has shown through its activism in the last two elections that they are not tied to the old identity politics of their parents. There is a glimmer of hope that the ethnically-based two party system is giving way to a more pluralistic society.
National consensus
Prolonged political instability has widened the political and ethnic divide, resulting in a lack of national consensus on critical development and economic issues, including electoral and institutional reforms, and the management of the national wealth. The Government, the political Opposition and citizens in general must make a dedicated effort to reach across the ethnic divide to agree on a common vision for a new national development plan. (The report referred to role of the Carter Center in 1997 in facilitating a national dialogue to set out priorities for Guyana’s economic and social development policies for the next decade.)
Inclusion
Access to social and economic resources varies depending on which political party hold the reins of power. This political favoritism towards one ethnic group is especially worrisome at a time when Guyana is about to achieve unprecedented economic transformation. Vulnerable populations, rural and hinterland residents, along with the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex (LGBTQI) population have been excluded from meaningful engagement in political life and policymaking.
The absence of political agreement on policy priorities for economic opportunities and social benefits has resulted in long-standing disparities in the country.
Government responsiveness and effectiveness
The new government’s first challenge was its responsiveness to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the very limited healthcare infrastructure could not serve most citizens outside of Georgetown. The government promised some G$4.5 billion in relief to help the population cope with the economic consequences of the pandemic, but the equitable distribution of the relief was far from transparent. The key challenge is designing appropriate national development policies that deliver equitable services to all its citizens.
The Government must also address illegal gold mining and increasing criminality of gangs and drug cartels operating in the hinterlands of the country. The gold mining sector is characterized by rent-seeking behavior, landlordism, and high levels of corruption by regulatory institution officers. This is despite Guyana subscribing to international conventions, such as those relating to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in order to strengthen governance in extractive industries.
Government accountability continues to be perceived as weak and unaccountable due to non-compliance with Auditor General’s recommendations and ‘alleged government deception’ regarding major oil deals. The integrity of public institutions, including Parliament, the Police and more especially the GECOM, was severely tested in the past two years and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Trust in institutions and rule of law remains low because government effectiveness and accountability are susceptible to political pressure. The most significant lagging indicator is the low level of citizens’ meaningful participation in local and national decision-making.
The limited and ineffective government accountability mechanisms can undermine citizens’ confidence in public institutions and further erode consensus in a vision for the country’s future. Improving the effectiveness of the country’s public integrity institutions is critical to inclusive, sustainable development.
The National Assembly can provide a possible mechanism for initiating reform discussions and formalizing power-sharing. However, the 2020 parliamentary sessions commenced with legislators trading verbal personal insults rather than engaging in civilized discourse on matters of national importance. Parliamentary decision-making could promote consensus building and compromise, but it only exacerbates the political divide. The assessment team cited the statement from United Nations Resident Coordinator that “Parliament is the supreme institution of citizen representation. When the margin between the government and the opposition is one or two seats, parliamentary decision-making should entail consensus-building and compromise to be inclusive of all Guyanese citizens”.
Rule of law and human rights
Guyana has ratified eleven human rights treaties and incorporated their obligations into national legislation. However, the application and enforcement of these laws was uneven across race, ethnicity and geographic location. Indigenous populations suffer from insecure land tenure and require the approval of the subject Minister for various legal protections. Legal and societal discrimination remains high for LGBTQI persons. Laws criminalize consensual same-sex sexual conduct between adult men. Domestic abuse is widespread, and conviction rates for such abuse and for sexual offenses are low. Harsh prison conditions are also cited as human rights violations in many global indices, and the court system backlog has created a pre-trial detention rate of 30 percent.
Management of oil revenue
The country lacks the necessary expertise to manage the expected large inflows of government revenue from the oil and gas industry. International experience has shown that transparent oversight by national authorities is crucial to managing the risks that the oil and gas sector generates while maximizing the economic benefits. Effective governance of this anticipated new wealth will depend on prioritizing institutional reforms, strengthening the civil service and ensuring inclusive oversight of the country’s national development strategy.
Oil wealth tends to corrode political institutions that are already weak and without broad-based support. It is critical that consensus is achieved on the conceptual, structural, management and oversight functions of the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) to ensure equitable distribution of the wealth generated, to prevent exploitation by multinational corporations, and to mitigate the risk of corruption. There must also be a high degree of openness and transparency in the operationalization of the Fund.
Transparency and regulatory mechanisms
Guyana’s governance scores are in the bottom half of global rankings, especially in transparency and regulatory procedures. Only three aspects of doing business have improved over the past five years: accessing credit, registering property, and protecting minority investors. Other aspects have worsened, such as the lack of widespread use of electronic systems, reliable transportation and infrastructure.
Opportunity for change
With the prolonged dispute over the 2020 election outcome settled, there was a peaceful transition of power in 2015 and 2020. However, opportunity for change by the Granger-led administration was squandered by relitigating old grievances rather than bringing in a new young cadre of leadership. The current government has appointed new ministers who are likely to view problem-solving through different lenses.
Recommendations
The assessment team has made the following recommendations for the Authorities to consider:
(a) In order to develop a modern democratic state that serves the needs of all citizens, Guyana needs to:
(i) Have in place a national development strategy and corresponding budget;
(ii) Strengthen the quality and capacity of account ability and oversight institutions;
(iii) Legislate and operationalize the oversight and | management of the NRF;
(iv) Make revenue collection and management more efficient and transparent;
(v) Ensure adherence to governance mechanisms based on international environmental and social standards to avoid many of the issues resource-rich countries have faced;
(vi) Ensure better governance to manage long standing development constraints;
(vii) Improve the performance and reliability of municipal government in tandem with more effective coordination across ministries; and
(viii) Engage citizens, civil society organisations and media in pursuing accountability and connectivity of governance in all regions.
(b) The Government and Opposition parties need to find common ground in public spending on health, education, job creation and climate change risks.
(c) Guyana must invest in building the capacity of its current and future workforce in the oil and gas sector as well as other sectors like infrastructure, hospitality, and agriculture. The oil wealth will exacerbate the deep disparities between regions and ethnic groups. Therefore, social protection and cash transfers will become important for the country’s poorest and most vulnerable.
