Enmore, Wales severed sugar workers benefit from $630M as Gov’t commences ‘one-off’ $250,000 grant

On Saturday, Government commenced the distribution of its $250,000.00 ‘one-off’ cash grant to
sugar workers who were severed by the former APNU/AFC Government.
Vice President, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo had announced in October, that before the end of 2021,
severed sugar workers would benefit from the government payout totaling approximately $1.8B.
Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha and Finane Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh, spearheaded the
distribution exercise at the Enmore Administrative Office and the Wales Community Center
Ground.

Mustapha during the distribution exercise at the Enmore Estate, said the exercise represents
another fulfilled commitment by the government to improve the lives of people. “When we were
in Opposition, we said when we returned to government, we would ensure that the sugar workers
who were severed would receive some form of assistance although they already received their
severance pay. We are here today, and as a party when we make promises we always deliver on
those promises. Everyone here, who was severed by the previous administration, I know that
your lives were changed tremendously. You had a job and then suddenly we had the closure of
four estates. With the stroke of a pen, the former government put 7500 sugar workers on the
breadline. The repercussions were severe. The workers’ lives were devastated and the many
village economies were destroyed. Access to utilities became a luxury for many people. Today,
as I am speaking here, we are standing to the commitment made to the people,” he explained.
The agriculture minister stressed that in addition to the $250,000.00 grant, the government is
working to reopen several of the closed estates in a phased approach. He reminded those in
attendance that, to date, approximately 1200 workers who were severed have been reemployed
with the government investing close to $12B to rehabilitate the industry. Meanwhile, Finance
Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh, said the decision to close the estates was one of the most callous
decisions made by any government in Guyana’s history. “The decision to close the industry, the
decision to padlock the gates of sugar factories throughout the length and breadth of Guyana;
that decision by the APNU/AFC government shortly after they came into office was one of the
most callous, cruel, and unconscionable decisions made by any government in the history of this
country. This was not just about making a profit. When they flipped the switch and padlocked
the gates and said these factories were not operating anymore, they were not just closing a
factory, they were putting a noose around the neck of entire communities. You don’t have to be a
genius to figure out what would happen to a family if you put the primary breadwinner out of
work and there were 7000 families like that across the country,” Minister Singh declared.
Dr. Singh also said that in addition to its efforts to resuscitate the industry, the government is
also working to create opportunities for citizens in other sectors. He pointed out that in 2022, the
government, in collaboration with the private sector, will be hosting a series of job fairs so that
persons can be made aware of the job opportunities available.  He said that more than 2,500
sugar workers turned up to the venues to receive their much-anticipated relief package. Several
sugar workers sighting the challenges faced since the closure of the estates, thanked the
government for the relief. “I’ve been working at the Enmore Estate since the 16 th  July 1981. I

got severance in 2017 or 2018. From that time, I’ve been all over looking for work. When the
government took office, I was reemployed at GuySuCo and I’m so thankful to the government
for this grant,” Hilla Rai, one of the workers who benefited from the grant at Enmore said. She
expressed plans to use the grant as a start-up to fund a business to help support her family.
Severed workers from Enmore Estate benefited from a payout of approximately $398M, while
severed workers from Wales Estate received approximately $232M.  The ministers will be in
Region Six on Sunday to continue the distribution exercise.