Ann Chapman said: “Everything gone up in the market in Linden, vegetables, meat; everything expensive in the market. Now when you go to buy cheese, it is expensive. The cost for a pound of cheese is $900 now, before it was $600 a pound. I stopped eating meat because everything gone up now. A pound of chicken now is $600, before it was $400 a pound. Another thing is that there’s a lot of qualified people, who graduated from university and they are not getting proper jobs. For instance, my daughter and I came back from the United States a while now, and we both are qualified but we are not getting proper jobs. She’s working in a store at the moment and because of my age, I’m not getting a job so I had to opt in opening a variety stall that offers more choices for customer to shop in MacKenzie to make ends meet. Still, things are expensive. My daughter has a son, so she has to provide for him. Many days the money is not enough but we have to cope with the rising cost of living. Also, we are paying rent and rent right now is expensive. A few months ago rent cost $20,000, now it cost $35,000 to rent an apartment in Linden. And, my daughter applied for land and until now, she did not receive a call from the Ministry of Housing and Water… They gave her a number. I applied for a grant to get help to open my photocopying business at the apartment I’m living and I’m hoping I get through with that. The business will help me with the rising cost of living because the demand is there for it. However, the government should increase the salary for people, so more people can afford to buy things in Linden because people are suffering right now. Also, they should open more job opportunities for the people in the region too since everyone is affected by the rising cost of living.”
Wilman Britton
Wilman Britton, 59-year-old vendor said: “The cost of living is high but I wouldn’t say it is affecting me because we have a culture in Guyana, where we are accustom to cost of living. We try to survive. We don’t have a choice. Although we are not pleased about the rising cost of living, we just have to accept it. I found things such as rice and sugar gone up. For instance, the cost for a small pack of Karibee rice now is $1,900 and a few months ago, it cost $1,500. I’m buying 5 pounds of sugar now for $1,000, before a pound of sugar cost $60. Even steel rod expensive; the cost per length now in Linden is $1,700/$1,800, before it cost about $1,100. Things are expensive now in Linden. I find that I’m saving less and spending more now. I think the government should do a feasibility study, to see why the cost of living is so high. Based on observation, I would rate the government at a 60% since I’m seeing that they have been doing good things in some areas of the country. However, I will like them to do things in other areas, for instance, Linden.”
Saskia Higgins
Saskia Higgins, 27-year-old fruits’ vendor said: “Everything gone up in the market. People can barely afford to buy things with the given salary. The salary people working for now, they can hardly afford to eat. Also, you’re not getting to save anything and everything just raising. Some days, I would be short of food in the home because things are so expensive in the market. The chicken price, for instance, is high since a pound of chicken now cost $560 and $600 at some places and before it was cheaper, it cost about $360/$400 a pound. Oil all gone up, a 1 litre bottle of oil now cost $1,000 and $900 at some places and before it cost $580 and $560. The government should raise people’s salary, especially mothers who have children going to school, so they can help the young people since the children would normally be begging other children for food to eat. Parents can’t afford to feed their children.”
Dinella Cameron
Dinella Cameron said: “It’s not an easy task because everything gone up in the market and the salary is not raising. I find that I’m saving less and spending more because for a large family like mine, we would normally budget for $50,000 to buy groceries but now we have to double that amount to buy groceries for the home because everything gone up in the market. Things such as milk gone up. A few months ago, a small pack of Fernleaf milk was $400, now it cost about $700 for the same pack. Oil, too, expensive; the 5-gallon bottle of oil now cost $11,000, before it was about $5,000. I think the government should provide more job opportunities and raise the salary a little more for the people who lives in Linden, so they can get more money because the cost for everything going up in the region.”
Kirt Sue
Kirt Sue said: “The cost of living affects me as I travel back and forth to the United States and Guyana to buy items to sell back. The taxi alone to travel to the Cheddi Jagan International airport cost $20,000 now, before the fare was $15,000. Another thing is people rather buy things from Georgetown because it is cheaper compare to Linden. When I buy things in Georgetown once a month to sell back in Linden, I rather buy from the Chinese store because it’s cheaper and right now the cost of living is high. People buy from me when I’m in Linden because I sell at an affordable price to them, compare to the prices things are sold here in MacKenzie, Linden. I also order things online for them because it’s cheaper for them to buy. I think the government should utilise billboards to show us, the people, what they are doing with the money that is placed into the budget for the development of the country and how it is spent, instead of listening to rumours about how it is being spent presently. Another thing is the importation cost on items. When COVID-19 affected the United States, they raised most of their items, however, we were still getting our things here in Guyana at a cheap price but then everybody started raising their price, in the market for no reason. The government should set control prices on items to control the high prices people place on food items in the market.
Keisha Richards
Keisha Richards said: “Everything gone up in the market. I’m working for $50,000 monthly at a security firm and the money cannot do to provide for my family. By the time I buy groceries for the home and things for the children for them to go to school, the money finish. Main things that I need gone up in the market. For example, 20 pounds of sugar cost $2,800 now, before the cost was $2,000. Oil too gone up. The 1.42-litre bottle oil now cost $2,800, before it was about $1600. I think the government should look into how these security firms are paying their employees because I’m seeing that everybody’s salary is raising, and the security firms are not raising their workers’ salary.”
Cornelius Francisco
Cornelius Francisco, a 61-year-old vendor said: “A lot of stuff gone up in the market in relation to groceries. Even vegetables and provisions gone up. A few months ago, a pound of plantain was $100/$120, now the cost for a pound of plantain is $260/$280. All mints prices gone up; the small pack cough drops mint that I sell now cost $500 inclusive of 100 mints in the pack, before the cost was $380. I can remember when we had control prices on items in the market and how things were affordable to buy, back in the days. Now, the market is an open market and everybody putting on their own prices on items. The government should do something about this, in order to give the people some relief in the price per item, when shopping in the market place. Also, the government is indeed building some houses in the Linden scheme. However, they should create more investment here in Linden by establishing hotels here in Linden, so people can invest in order to create more job opportunities for people in Linden since jobs here are limited. I’m selling papers and other things to make a living, and what I’m seeing is that people can’t afford to buy the newspapers. Instead, they take the money and buy sugar for their family because the cost for items in the market is high. I think the government need to reopen the mining company and cement company to create more jobs for the people.”
Lionel Edwards
Lionel Edwards said: “Everything gone up in the market. For instance, a pound of chicken now cost $500, before it was $300. All the commodities in the shop gone up, even sugar too gone up. It was cheaper, now a pound of sugar cost about $200. I think the government should place control prices on items like what we had back in the days, so the prices for items in the market would not be so high. Another thing is I’m getting problems with the mining company, Bosai. The company is disposing waste into the Kara Kara creek where I would do my fishing and the waste causes the water to look milky. The people in the area depends on the fish in the creek to use for their everyday cooking and instead, the fish is gone because of the waste thrown in the water by the company. They can use the river instead of the creek. I think the government should look into this.”
Sinika King
Sinika King, 32-year-old vendor said: “Everything gone up in the market. Look at plantain price: a pound of plantain cost $260 now, before the cost was $80 a pound. Then there is milk: a small pack of Natura milk was $700 before, now the cost is $1,000. I have four children and when I finish buying groceries and things for the children, I can’t save anything, even down to the taxi fare to travel from home to the market to sell every day is expensive. I think the government should provide a monthly stipend for the people in order to help with the rising prices of items in the region.”
Mary Jemmott
Mary Jemmott, 57-year-old haberdashery vendor said: “The cost of living is high. Everything that I have in my stall, I credit it in order to sell to make a living but now everything is expensive in the market. I can’t even afford to pay the electricity bill because that too is expensive. My things are selling slow. One week straight I might get $700 and I would have to use that to survive. I applied for a small loan from the government to assist with my business but I was told that I have to come with $8,000, until now I’m trying to get that money. I need help from the government because everything gone up and I can’t even afford groceries. Look at cooking gas: a small bottle cooking gas now cost $4,500, before cooking gas cost about $3,000/$3,500. The transportation cost to travel from the Ward to the MacKenzie market everyday cost $150 now, before it was cheaper. The government should try to carry down the prices for items in the market. I’m glad if they could help me out with the loan to run my business.”
Eunice Harry
Eunice Harry said: “Sometimes things are too expensive and sometimes things are cheap. Now the money is so small, at times I can’t afford to buy things for the home because greens, groceries, cooking gas, everything is getting high in Linden. A few months ago, a small bottle cooking gas was $3,000/$3,500, now the same bottle cost $4,500.Even transportation cost to transport the groceries from Linden is expensive.
I think the government should work towards lowering the cost of living by dropping the prices for main commodities in the market.”
Trion Dover
Trion Dover, a 30-year-old labourer said: “When I get my daily salary, my money would go toward my family, I don’t get to save anything. Many days my belly would hurt when working but I can’t stop because I have to provide for my family. When you go into the supermarket to buy groceries, everything is expensive. Main things such as cooking oil gone up. A small bottle cooking oil is $5,000 now, a few months ago it was $4,500. Even diapers expensive. Before, a pack of diapers cost $1,300, now the same pack of diapers cost about $1,400.
When I raise my cost to carry people groceries to their car, they don’t want to pay the price but I have to raise the price because everything gone up now in the market.”
