(Kaieteur News) – I learnt that the government plans to start selling bottled water through Guyana Water Inc (GWI). This might look like a good idea to some, but it comes as nothing more than a contradiction to good governance and economic reasoning and should be rejected outright. Government monopolies have always been inefficient, and this will not change just because GWI wants to cover for something it should already be doing.

This position is encouraged by evidence that already exists from experience of dealing with government owned monopolies, and particularly GWI’s demonstrated poor performance. The experience of GUYSUCO stands out as a reason not to encourage the expansion of a government monopoly. Contrary to the claims of the government, GUYSUCO has made no contribution to the GDP of this country since 2011. It is not surprising that the independent auditors cannot describe the company as a going concern. Yet, the government persists in its delusions. It might be paying out money to workers and others, but it gets nothing in return. Using labour cost as a guide, GUYSUCO lost 51 cents on every dollar it spent on its workers in 2024. To rub salt on the wound, by selling sugar overseas, it is subsidizing foreign consumers.

Guyanese should not think for a minute that GWI would be any better. It is a government monopoly that supplies water to the nation through pipelines. Neighbourhoods across this country can attest to the contention that GWI has not discharged its responsibility well. Its service is poor and ineffective. Just like GUYSUCO, GWI lost 27 cents on every dollar it spent on labour cost last year. Why should Guyanese believe that it would do better at a second line of business? Splitting focus like this will only make things worse with the first line of business.