Tag Archives: Seepaul Narine

Guyana: Sugar workers’ strike gets labels: “Illegal,” “political”

10/27/2015 – 12:02 am

Sugar workers’ strike gets labels: “Illegal,” “political”

Even as the Guyana Sugar Corporation (Guysuco) appealed to  the Guyana Agricultural Workers Union (GAWU) to end its “illegal” strike, the Minister of Agriculture Noel Holder labeled the industrial action“political.”

GAWU, which is closely aligned to the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), called a three-day strike on Sunday to press demands for management to begin pay negotiations. However, management has said that it is best to await the release of the report of the Commission of Inquiry into the ailing sugar industry before going to the bargaining table.    Continue reading →

By guyaneseonline | Posted in Agriculture, Business, Government, Guyana | Also tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments (3)

Guyana Sugar: Dr Clive Thomas appointed Chairman of GuySuCo

07/29/2015 – 1:15 am
Dr Clive Thomas

Dr Clive Thomas

[www.inewsguyana.com] – The APNU+AFC government has appointed Dr Clive Thomas to be the Chairman of the ailing Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), replacing Shaik Baksh.

Dr Thomas is an economist and was recently appointed as the Presidential Adviser on sustainable development, with responsibility for economic matters and the State Asset Recovery Programme.

In the July 24 edition of the gazette, it was noted that cabinet approved the new Board of Directors for a period of one year with effect from July 01, 2015 to June 30, 2016.  Continue reading →

By guyaneseonline | Posted in Agriculture, Business, Government, Guyana, Personalities | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (1)

Guyana’s Sugar Industry – GuySuCo in deep financial crisis

01/02/2014 – 11:55 pm

GuySuCo in deep financial crisis

 JANUARY 1, 2014 | KNEWS | – owes creditors $10.5B

“No turnaround unless industry fixes agri problems” – GAWU warns

Government, this year, will be scrambling to find solutions for the country’s sugar industry as production fell to an embarrassing 23-year low in 2013.  [President Donald Ramotar is pictured at right]

Production at the eight estates in Berbice and Demerara closed on December 21, the last day of grinding, at a dismal 186,807 tonnes. This was below the 190,000-tonne figure that had been targeted and which had been revised again and again from the original 260,000 tonnes at the beginning of the year. The situation has now left the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) owing banks and suppliers in excess of $10.5B, union officials confirmed yesterday.
Last month, the National Assembly approved a $4B bailout to help pay its 16,000-plus workers and meet other critical expenditure.

However, according to Seepaul Narine, General Secretary of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU), the largest sugar workers’ union, the $4B will not be enough.

Once the ‘sweet king’, earning the hog’s share of foreign exchange, sugar has slid to third, behind gold and rice.  gold and rice Continue reading →

By guyaneseonline | Posted in Business, Economics/Finance, Governance, Government, Guyana, Personalities, Technology | Also tagged , , , , , , | Comments (16)
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