Interviews and photos by Subhana Shiwmangal
Stabroek News spoke to members of the public in the Mahaicony area, East Coast Demerara and La Penitence area, Georgetown about the rising cost of living and how it is affecting them. The following are their comments:Doodnauth Kumar, a 46-year-old cash crop farmer said: “Greens going and coming. As a farmer, I have to try to cope with the things that goes up and down. I find that the greens have gone down but still things are high; for example, groceries. Lately, the government gave me 10 pounds of manure for my cash crops. That has helped but still it’s too little for the amount of crop I have since everything gone up.The government is doing well. However, where I live in Mahaica, I think the government should visit the area to fix the streets in there. Another thing is, the government should reduce the cost on groceries, so everyone can afford to buy groceries.”
Mark Prass
Mark Prass, a 49-year-old pastry and fast food vendor said: “In my business, the things to make my items are expensive and I would take the loss for it because people can’t afford to buy the things when the prices goes up. For example, for the past few month, until now I have been selling my eggballs for $160, although a 4-lb bag of flour cost $620. A few months ago, the cost for the same 4-lb bag of flour was $300 and something. Even down to oil expensive, a 5-gallon bottle oil now is $13,000, before it cost $8,000/$8,500. This has been affecting me because I have two children and the prices for groceries are rising, resulting in me saving less. Most of the time I run my business at a loss and this affect me a lot. The government need to stabilize the prices on food items in the market, so we the people can afford to shop the things we need.”
Stephon Gordon
Stephon Gordon said: ”Everything gone up in the market and the salary I’m working for can’t mine my family. This is affecting me from saving also, plus the transportation cost to send my son to school every day is expensive. Even children’s clothing are expensive these days. If you look at groceries such as milk and oil, you will see how expensive these items are for me. A pack of Natura milk now cost $700, before it was $400 for the same pack. A 1-litre bottle oil cost $700, before the cost was $400. The government should create more jobs for the people in general and raise the people’s salary to match the cost of living.”
Andrew Singh
Andrew Singh, 21-year-old vegetable vendor said: “Business goes up and down steady because greens prices fluctuates. And, sometimes people are not buying, while sometimes they do. I find that I’m saving less and finances are slow too. This is really affecting me since groceries plus greens prices for me are high. Imagine 2 pounds of eschallot that used to cost $300, now cost $500 a pound. Even celery high, before a pound of celery was sold for $300, now the cost is $500. The government should look into the rise in prices for food items in the market.”
Patricia Charles said: “The rising cost of living has made food items and clothes dear. When you go back to the supermarket, thinking the prices for a particular item is the same, the price goes up. Flour, for instance, was $100 a pound before, now the cost per pound of flour is near $200. Rice all gone up; a small pack Karibee rice used to be $2,200, now that same pack of rice cost $2,800. Sugar gone up; everything gone up. I mining chicken and when I used to mine a hundred chicken, I had to reduce that amount to half because the feed price all get expensive. Feed price jumped from $5,300 a bag to $7,300 a bag. Not only that affecting my chicken price, a lot of them dying out. Every time I would go and buy the feed for the chicken, it goes up. The government need to step up a little more and come up with ways to get the prices down for food items because this rising cost of living for people is not easy.”
Joyce Persaud
Joyce Persaud, a farmer said: “Things rise up a lot in the market especially groceries. I see the greens price gone down which is good but the government need to work on lowering the grocery items in the market for the people. A small Karibee rice that was sold for $1,100 a few months ago, is now $2,200. The small pack of Natura milk all gone up now. Well squash dropped to a $100 for one from $300, plus peppers and eschallot drop, which is good. I see the drug price I used for my crops is expensive. Well, the government gave me a 10 pounds bag of manure. I’m thankful but still that can’t do for my crops. I still have to end up buying the expensive manure. The government should help the poor people; also give farmers a helping hand. A lot of poor people can’t afford to buy a lot of groceries for their homes because items are expensive in the market. They have to end up cutting back on their grocery items.”
Cassie Jobe
Cassie Jobe, a 28-year-old home-care aide said: “Well the cost of living has increase drastically and it affects every Guyanese. Look at the price for the Natura milk, a small pack of Natura milk now cost $900, before the cost was $500. I know that the Covid had the country hold up for a period of time whereby no one wasn’t working, now everything in the market has increase. Import tax on imported items all gone up, for example, simple threads to sew clothes gone up. People are exploiting us on greens and fruits that are imported, such as broccoli, grapes, apples, they are expensive to purchase. It is so expensive to feed a family, especially being a single parent like me. Another thing is that all meat prices gone up. For example, a pound of beef a few months ago cost about $400/500, now a pound of beef is $800. The government should help single parent despite our income; many youths too. Also, I don’t have CXC but I was trained in the areas of first aid and homecare for the elderly and look I have a job. I suggest that the government provide training for the youths in La Penitence area. So let’s say they don’t have CXC, they can be trained in a field and given a job based on an assessment at the end of the training; so these youths would not venture into stealing. Also, the government should drop taxes on certain items that are growing right here in Guyana.”
Noreaga Nurse
Noreaga Nurse, a 32-year-old university student said: “The cost of living is high on everything but for me, I’m feeling the high price on rent, for instance. My rent has increased by 15% now and this doesn’t include food, you know. I think the government should implement a regularized body for consumers in terms of rent. It should include frequent checks and balances. Everything else rising not only in Guyana, but throughout the world so it’s not just Guyana feeling the rising cost of living.”
Zalina Singh
Zalina Singh said: “The cost of living really gone up on everything, such as: groceries, greens, meat… Look at the fish price now, a few months ago, I used to buy a pound of Snapper for $800/$700, the snapper price has gone up now to $1,200 a pound. Even the price for a pound of pick shrimp get expensive now. I buying a pound of shrimps for $1,600 now, before the same pound cost $1,000. I live on fish, shrimps and greens and these things are expensive, all the fishes are expensive… even down to the beef and chicken expensive.
Well I see greens price gone down a little because the prices fluctuates, however things like groceries always expensive because every week groceries always going up. The government should look into the people importing goods because the goods prices are expensive and drop the taxes on imported items.”
Randolph Williams
Randolph Williams, a 51-year-old labourer said: “The rising cost of living is affecting me financially when it comes to the grocery price. The money I’m making as a labourer can’t buy nothing much. I receive $5000 a day and that can’t pay my utility and water bill. Even cooking gas high. A few months ago a big bottle cooking gas was $4,200 and now the same bottle of cooking oil cost about $4,500. Everything gone up.
You see the small pack Fernleaf milk, before it cost $600 and something, now that same pack of Fernleaf milk cost $700 and something. Another thing is in the La Penitence market, the roof in here still needs fixing because when the rain falls, it pours through the holes that are in the roof and until now the government is not doing anything about this, even vendors’ items would get wet in the process, the government should do something about this. Also, the government should do something about the rising cost of living in this country.”
Fazlur Yusuff
Fazlur Yusuff said: “The cost of living is high mostly on grocery items, for example, a small pack of the Demerara Gold sugar cost $200 now. Before the pack of sugar cost $140/$160. Those big bag Karibee rice gone up now. Before I used to buy a big bag of rice for $1,100, now that same big bag cost $1,800. The government should do something about this because poor people are feeling it on the rise in these prices. When I receive my pension and I buy food items, I’m not getting to save anything because everything expensive.”
