Guyana

Flag of Guyana

Language: English

Currency: Guyanese dollar (GYD)

Calling Code: 592

Guyana is in South America. Bordering countries are Suriname, Brazil and Venezuela. To the south is the Rupununi region. The northern part with the main town of Annai is savannah, the southern part is jungle and completely undeveloped. Available tours definitely have an expedition character. The only village is Lethem, which is on the border.

Guyana is a small, formerly socialist country. Its natives, the "Amerindians" are found almost exclusively in the Southwest and are under "Conservation." The country itself is very tourist friendly, e.g. For example, the timber industry leaves a 200m wide strip of forest along roads and rivers for tourists.

The country's main sources of income are sugar, gold, rice, bauxite and timber exports. Tourism still plays a minor role, but some jungle lodges and day tours are available. An economic upturn is expected from the oil production on drilling platforms that started in 2019.

 

Regions

Coast
Home to the majority of the population, structured by a few rivers that flow into the Atlantic.
Georgetown Bartica Mabaruma New Amsterdam

highlands
The plateau and mountainous region between the Orinoco and the Amazon is sparsely populated and known for its nature.
Lethem · Paramakatoi

Berbice-Corentyne
linden trees

 

Cities

The northwest region, the coast between the Demerara and the border with Venezuela, is almost undeveloped.

All cities are rather small. The city limits are sometimes very blurred, on the coast the buildings stretch along the streets to the next city.

1 Georgetown – Cultural and economic center of the country.
2 Linden - Industrial center surrounded by ore mines.
3 Kwakwani – Southernmost mining town with road access.
4Anna Regina
5 Bartica
6 Skeldon

 

Travel Destinations in Guyana

Iwokrama Forest is a massive area in Potaro- Siparuni region in Guyana. It covers a total area of 1 million acres of pristine forest.

Kaieteur Falls is a beautiful geologic formation on Potaro river in Potaro- Siparuni region of Guyana. Its total height is measured at 741 feet.

 

Getting here

entry requirements
From Europe, citizens of the new EU states (“Eastern enlargement”) need a visa. Germans, Austrians, Luxembourgers and Swiss do not need a visa for stays of up to 3 months. Anyone who needs a visa – including Liechtenstein residents – can get one, e.g. B. Apply at the Guyanese embassy in Brussels (current list of entry requirements).

The usual vaccinations for tropical countries are not mandatory, but recommended. Neighboring countries may require proof of yellow fever vaccination. Malaria prophylaxis is not necessary in the coastal area, it is essential for the hinterland.

There are no railway lines or international bus routes into the country. However, there are minibus services that run between Georgetown and Paramaribo in one go (with ferry crossing).[1]

Airplane
There are no inexpensive direct flights from Central Europe. The connection is made by British or American airlines, in the 1st half of 2017 at prices well over € 3000 return, which always require a change in the USA, so that you still have to undergo the excessive entry controls there, including ESTA registration.

The only international airport is Timeri Airport (GEO), about 40km south of Georgetown. From here it's a quick taxi or minibus ride to Georgetown or Linden.

Be sure to get money in small bills (2, 5 and 10 GYD) or 1 USD bills before entering the country! There is no change option at the airport!

The porters pick up your luggage directly at customs. Everyone carries only one piece of luggage and gets 2-10 GYD for it depending on the weight. If you don't want to take a taxi, you must tell the porters immediately which minibus (Georgetown or Linden) you want to take. You will not have the opportunity to do so later. Make absolutely sure that all luggage ends up in the same taxi or bus. The bus prices are fixed, the drivers are honest and collect before the journey. Taxi fares should be negotiated in advance and paid at the end.

car/motorcycle/bicycle
A road runs east along the coast from Georgetown to the border river Corantijn; From there you can take a car ferry to Suriname. From Georgetown south the highway leads to Linden. All other road connections require an off-road four-wheel drive vehicle and precise knowledge of the trafficability. It happens again and again that bridges collapse and are not rebuilt!

Venezuela
Venezuela claims 65% of Guyanese territory. The resulting poor relations mean that there is no border crossing.

Brazil
The BR-401 bound for Bonfim, coming from Boavista, Brazil, crosses the border into Lethem. The only raison d'être of this sleepy town is the crossing, which is open from 7am to 7pm. Minibuses operate to Linden and Georgetown (15 hrs in the dry season, well over 24 in the rain). There is also a small airport with three daily flights from Georgetown. Price early 2022: € 220 single.
There are some basic, overpriced hotels in both border villages.

Ship
Yachtsmen must check in at Georgetown or upriver at Bartica.

 

Getting around

In the area of the cities there is a well-functioning mini-bus line system. It stops where you want to get off the route. Likewise, you simply stop a bus to take a ride. There are a few horn signals, e.g. B. "Do you want to come with me?".

A route change can also be negotiated at the departure point (start of the line), provided that the driver returns to his route. The whole bus can also be rented for other destinations.

The taxis are more comfortable. For exotic routes, be sure to ask beforehand about the suitability of the vehicle, it often has to be an all-wheel drive vehicle. Waving at the side of the road to the next passer-by and asking the price of your destination is not without its dangers – licensed taxis are yellow and have a number plate with a number beginning with “H”. There is no such thing as a "Taxi Control Centre". But there are always some near the hotels and restaurants.

It is also very easy to walk within the cities, but there is a risk of robbery, especially at night. Bicycles are also plentiful, but not recommended for tourists because of the temperatures.

Those wishing to hire a car - which is not practical in the rainy season - can obtain a local driver's permit at the airport or License Revenue Office (Camp Street, Georgeton), the fee is G$2000 (2022). Validity 30 days.

To reach the areas west of the Essequibo, one can either take one of the decrepit ferries or a "speedboat" from Parika. There are no bridges. You have to plan several hours for the ferry ride, the speedboats (small wooden boats with outboard motors) reach Tiger Island, Bartica or Suddie within an hour.

 

Language

The English dialect is easy to understand. The language may seem incomplete to the school English-speaking tourist, but once you get used to using simple, unadorned sentences, you can get by anywhere.

Many of the Guyanese learned German at school, and there are also many German-speaking foreigners in the vicinity of the university.

 

Shopping

Shops open 8am-4pm Saturday mornings. Sunday is rest day.

The national currency is the Guyana Dollar (GYD), which is tied to the US$. At the beginning of 2022, one US dollar is equivalent to 207 Guyana dollars. US$ should be carried on entry and exchanged in the country. You can often pay with US$ instead of GYD. Change is always in GYD. ATMs are not available outside the capital, and credit cards are hardly ever accepted. At least at Scotiabank there are no problems with foreign cards. If you don't have enough money with you, you can get cash in banks with credit cards. There is also a Western Union office in Georgetown (19 Water St.) which allows cash to be transferred directly to Georgetown from Europe.

In the markets there is nothing that does not exist. You just have to find it. High-tech is mostly imported from the USA and is at least as expensive as in Europe. Local products (especially the rum) are of high quality and are preferable to imported goods. Prices can almost always be negotiated.

 

Cuisine

Creole cuisine is not widespread. Chinese and Indians in particular dominate the bars. But of course there are also fast food restaurants. Important sources of starch are cassava and plantains.

Metemgee is a stew made with cassava, sweet potatoes, plantains, okra and a spicy, peppery coconut milk sauce. Most Guyanese eat metemgee with fried fish, boiled eggs, or meat.
Fufu is a mash made from cassava and plantains that doesn't deny its African origins.
Rum is the main alcoholic drink. The El Dorado distillery in Demerara stores its product in wooden barrels for 12-15 years and also exports to Europe.

 

Nightlife

Nightlife doesn't exist. Restaurants and bars are open until the owner is tired. For example, at Market Square in Georgetown, the last bar closes at around 11:00 p.m. There's coffee there from around 5:00 a.m.

 

Accommodation

Hotels are rare, expensive and without breakfast. Sometimes there are common rooms where you can use your hammock for little money. Other accommodations are a matter of luck. Tent sites or rest areas do not exist.

 

Security

Exchange money only in official exchange offices. The black market is not worth it (about 1% savings).

The country is one of the poorest in the world. The gap between rich and poor is correspondingly large. Never let a large sum of money be seen on the street. Avoid walking in slums, etc.

Whites are a minority and many of the locals still have personal memories of oppression during British colonial rule. This occasionally leads to provocations towards foreign whites.

The military controls large parts of the hinterland. In the southeast there are border disputes with Suriname, in the west with Venezuela. Travel to these remote areas must be approved by the military. There are military checkpoints with ID checks along the country roads.

The settlements of the Amerindians in the southwest are under the control of the chiefs or elders (captains). Permission to visit this area is required from the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples Affairs (formerly Amerindians Affairs Office) in Georgetown (251-252 Quamina / Thomas St.). There you will also get a special document for the captains, which states the reason for the visit and the estimated duration. This is to avoid getting into a tribal war. But are they really postponing their war because you're traveling around?

If you want to travel in the back country, you should find a guide who has a gun license. Carrying weapons in Guyana requires a permit. Foreigners can only get such a permit with a work permit if the work requires it. And it can take a few years.

 

Health

The usual vaccinations for tropical countries (typhoid, cholera, hepatitis) are not mandatory, but recommended. Malaria prophylaxis is not necessary in the coastal area, it is essential for the hinterland.

Only drink bottled water. Only use tap water to brush your teeth if it is chlorinated or boiled. Ice cubes in restaurants are harmless. Be sure to wash fresh fruit from the market before eating. Only eat meat that is boiled or well roasted. If you still want an “English steak”, you should go to the meat hall on the market BEFORE and look up. It is your life.

If you go to a doctor, you need a lot of cash. The treatment is paid directly in advance. Medicines are available in some pharmacies, but much has to be procured first. This can take days.

Those who are particularly brave go to a public hospital. The treatment and all medication are then free of charge. However, one should consider that medical care suffers from severe financial problems and at least pay something voluntarily.

There are no ambulances, so take a taxi in an emergency. Addresses of doctors can be obtained from the hotel or found in the telephone book. If you are traveling inland, you will need to arrange for emergency transportation yourself. One possibility is e.g. B. the pilots' association at the Ogle Airstrip (near Georgetown). Air transport from/to Konashen (southernmost airfield) costs around USD 2,000 there. Helicopters are only allowed to the military.

 

Climate and travel time

Tropical hot and humid all year round. The best travel time on the coast is between the two rainy seasons, which last from May to August and mid-November to January. Inland, it only rains more often in December.

 

Rules and respect

A friendly "Hello" when entering restaurants and shops is a welcome one.

Too much bare skin is not welcomed on the street, nudism is forbidden.

Racism against Indians and whites originating from the black population spread. The division has defined the political mood in the country since the 1990s.

 

Practical hints

Mobile phone coverage is only good in the capital region. Provider is GTT. In 2022, the minute price will be G$ 34, SMS G$ 9.3. The few hotspots in Georgetown can only be used with a data package.

Internet is slow, GTT only sells 5 or 10 Mb/s lines.

 

Geography

Guyana is located between 1° and 8.5° north latitude and between 57° and 61° west longitude. The lowest point is on the Atlantic coast, the highest point is Mount Roraima-Tepui at 2810 m. On the border to Venezuela and Brazil rises the mountains of Guiana, after which the state was named. The main river is the Essequibo, which rises in the south of the country and flows into the Atlantic in the north. The 225 m high Kaieteur Falls are located in the Potaro National Park.

85% of the country is sparsely populated tropical rainforest. The west and south are criss-crossed by mountain ranges, where the country's most important rivers originate. On the coast you will find a swampy coastal strip. Behind is a 20 to 70 km wide alluvial zone, which is partly at sea level and was dyked by Dutch settlers in the 18th century and drained by countless drainage canals. The country's agricultural belt is located here, with rice, sugar cane, coconuts and citrus fruits being cultivated.

 

Climate

The climate is tropical with rainfall up to 3000 mm per year; Average annual temperatures 27 °C, maximum temperatures around 34 °C, minimum temperatures around 20 °C; Humidity 73-88%. There are two rainy seasons: strong from April to August, weaker September to November, stronger again until the end of January, then dryness until the beginning of April.

 

Environment

According to climate experts from the World Bank, Guyana is one of the countries in the South American-Caribbean region that will be particularly hard hit by sea level rise as a result of climate change. A meter rise in sea level in Guyana would inundate an area that is home to 70% of the population and 40% of the country's agricultural land. In 2004, the government placed an area of around 4,000 square kilometers in southwestern Guyana under protection, in which the indigenous Waiwai people live.

According to the Environmental Performance Index, State and Dynamics of the Environmental System, published in January 2021, Guyana ranks 126th out of 180 countries. In the WorldRiskReport 2021, the country ranks 7th out of 181 countries with the highest risk of an extreme natural hazard leading to a disaster.

 

Cities

The largest cities are (as of January 1, 2017): Georgetown 235,017 inhabitants, Linden 44,690 inhabitants, New Amsterdam 35,039 inhabitants and Anna Regina 12,448 inhabitants.

The population of Georgetown was 151,679 at the 1991 census and 137,330 at the September 15, 2002 census. This means that around 20 percent of the country's people are concentrated in the capital region.

 

History

Origin of the name "Guyana"

The name "Guyana" was derived from the original name of the Guiana region. The region includes Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana and parts of Venezuela and Brazil. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the name means "land of many waters".

 

Colonial era

In the 17th and 18th centuries, today's Guyana consisted of the colonies of Essequibo, Demerara and Berbice, which were founded by the Netherlands. In 1763 there was a slave revolt in Berbice under Cuffy, who is now regarded as a national hero.

The development of women's suffrage is linked to the colonial history of the area. In 1812, according to Frank A. Narain, women were granted the right to vote if they owned slaves or could pay income tax on at least 10,000 guilders; There is no information in the source as to whether this created equality between women and men.

Ownership of these areas changed hands several times between the colonial powers of the Netherlands, Great Britain and France until 1815. After the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte, the three colonies were transferred to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland at the Congress of Vienna in 1815. The colony of British Guiana was founded in 1831.

On August 1, 1834, slavery was abolished. After the expiry of the subsequent work obligation for the former slaves on July 31, 1838 and the loss of workers, especially on the plantations, the British obliged contract workers from British India as replacements.

From 1849 only male British citizens were allowed to vote; their right to vote was further restricted by demands on their assets.

After Frank A. Narain, women were given back the right to vote in 1928; the right to vote continued to be linked to a certain wealth. Another source puts 1945 as the year in which active women's suffrage was introduced into the British Guiana legislature.

In 1953, British troops intervened in British Guiana over fears that the People's Progressive Party (PPP), founded by husband and wife team Janet and Cheddi Jagan, was planning to establish a communist state in Guyana.

research trips
The British geologist and topographer Charles B. Brown traveled from 1868 to 1871 on behalf of the colonial administration through the mostly unexplored hinterland of the region between Suriname and Venezuela. Brown was commissioned with the exact surveying of the river courses and geological investigations. Thanks to his 40-month research trips in the tropical jungle, numerous native settlements, deposits of mineral resources and topographical features in the interior were documented. According to Schomburgk's research results from 1841 to 1844, Brown's work was also important for the exact determination of the borders with the neighboring countries of Suriname, Brazil and Venezuela.

 

Independence

Guyana finally achieved independence from the United Kingdom on May 26, 1966, and was declared a Cooperative Republic by the People's National Congress (PNC) on February 23, 1970 under Premier Forbes Burnham.

Ethnic conflicts between Afro-Guyanese and Indo-Guyanese have played a role in society and politics since the 1960s. In 1978, the Jonestown massacre made Guyana world news. After the assassination of a US politician, cult leader Jim Jones of the Peoples Temple ordered his followers to commit suicide. Over 900 people lost their lives.

In 1980 a new constitution was passed. The powers of the prime minister were restricted and the executive presidency introduced.

 

Free market economy, elections

In 1989, the government of Guyana began an economic program that intended a drastic shift from a state-controlled planned economy to a free-market economy with open markets.

After the 1992 presidential elections, won by the PPP's Cheddi Jagan, militant supporters of the defeated PNC rioted in the capital, Georgetown. After Jagan died in 1997, his widow, Janet Jagan, was elected President in December 1997. In August 1999 she resigned due to ill health and Bharrat Jagdeo became the new President of Guyana. On September 2, 2006, Bharrat Jagdeo was confirmed in office as President. After the renewed electoral success of the PPP in 2011, its candidate Donald Ramotar became the new president on December 3, 2011, succeeding the previous incumbent Bharrat Jagdeo, who was not allowed to stand again after two terms in office.

The 11 May 2015 National Assembly elections were won by the opposition coalition A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and Alliance for Change (AFC) led by former Brigadier General David Granger. The PPP lost power after 23 years. Granger was sworn in as President on May 16, 2015.

On December 21, 2018, Parliament passed a vote of no confidence to Granger. According to the constitution, a new parliament should have been elected within 90 days. However, the government challenged the no-confidence vote in court, gaining time. On June 18, 2019, the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) ruled that the government should call new elections. The court-ordered elections finally took place on March 2, 2020. The electoral commission declared the ruling APNU-AFC coalition the victor, 59,077 votes ahead of the PPP. However, according to the findings of international election observers, the counting of the votes was partly irregular. After sustained protests, the government and opposition finally agreed on a recount. However, this started very slowly. On May 18, 2020, only 642 of 2339 ballot boxes had been recounted. Finally, after the recount, Irfaan Ali of the PPP took office in August 2020.

 

Human rights

homosexuality
Amnesty International has warned the country in its annual human rights reports; mainly because of the lifelong prison sentences for homosexuals and their frequent abuse by the state.

Parliament is sticking to the law, but at the same time is considering an anti-discrimination law that would e.g. to protect against discrimination based on sexual identity.

death penalty
Guyana is the only South American country to retain the death penalty in criminal law (Brazil, Chile and Peru still have it in military law). The country has also been criticized for this by human rights activists. The death penalty applies to murder, planned murder, mass murder, terrorism, rape, treason and torture. According to the constitution, however, their application is not mandatory. The last execution took place in 1997 (as of July 2017).

foreign policy
International political memberships
Since gaining independence in 1966, Guyana has striven to play a major role in international politics. The country was a member of the UN Security Council twice (1975-1976 and 1982-1983). Guyana maintains diplomatic relations with a large number of countries and organizations. The United Nations, the European Union (EU), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Organization of American States (OAS) all have offices in Georgetown. Guyana is also a member of the Commonwealth and CELAC and a founding member of the Caribbean Community CARICOM.

border conflicts
As a colonial heritage, Guyana has also taken over the border conflicts with neighboring countries. The disputed land areas of Guyana are added to the maps used in this article.

Border conflict with Venezuela
Venezuela, neighbor to the west, claims all territory west of the Essequibo. An arbitration award made by an international conciliation commission in 1899, then accepted by Venezuela, determined the current borders. In the 1960s, information emerged which Venezuela believed proved the bias of the then Conciliation Commission, and Venezuela has since renewed its claims to the boundary along the Essequibo. In 1966, the Venezuelan occupation of Ankoko Island led to a tightening of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Should the Venezuelan claim be upheld, more than half of Guyanese territory would fall to Venezuela. Guyana submitted the case to the International Court of Justice for a decision in 2018.

Border conflict with Suriname
The eastern neighbor Suriname also asserts territorial claims. After Suriname had militarily asserted its maritime territorial claims against Guyana in June 2000 by deploying two gunboats against the Canadian company CGX Energy and thus preventing the construction of an oil drilling platform, the state of Guyana called the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA ) based in The Hague to clarify the border dispute.

In consultation with the PCA, on September 20, 2007 Presidents Ronald Venetiaan and Bharrat Jagdeo publicly announced the final judgment of the five-member Arbitral Tribunal of September 17, 2007. The arbitral tribunal awarded Guyana 33,152 square kilometers and Suriname 17,871 square kilometers of the resource-rich sea area. Both heads of state welcomed the decision and the settlement of the dispute. The verdict makes it possible for oil companies to start exploring and developing the coastal basin. Oil reserves of 15 billion barrels and gas deposits of 1.2 trillion cubic meters are suspected on the seabed there.

According to previous investigations, most of these deposits are probably on the Guyanese side. The area that led to the military intervention through Suriname in June 2000 and forced the company CGX Energy to withdraw is also within the area allocated to Guyana. The tribunal dismissed the US$34 million in compensation demanded by Guyana for this action.

The arbitral tribunal further confirmed that the entire Corantijn river belongs to Surinamese territory. This means that Suriname has control over all shipping traffic from the mouth on the Corantijn.

 

Business

Generally
Guyana lives mainly from agriculture and mining. The country has one of the world's largest deposits of bauxite, its most important export product. Gold (see Omai opencast mine), manganese ores, diamonds, sugar, rice, shrimp, rum and wood are also exported. Large parts of the forest were cut down for the extraction of mineral resources, but at the same time the country would be “particularly affected by a rise in sea level as a result of climate change”. Guyana is a founding country and a member of CARICOM, which has existed since 1973.

The unemployment rate was given as 11.1% for 2017. Underemployment is widespread.

oil production
As of 2020, 13 oil fields have been discovered off the coast of Guyana with an estimated combined volume of 5 to 10 billion barrels of oil. These amounts are the world's largest newly discovered oil deposits for 20 years. Guyana has been exporting oil since 2020. Experts assume that with this deposit Guyana can rise to become the fourth largest oil producer in Latin America and produce more oil than Venezuela and Mexico. The IMF expects gross domestic product to increase by around 30% in 2020. The Irfaan Ali government granted ExxonMobil production concessions for four oil fields in the so-called Stabroek Block: Liza One, Liza Two, Payara and Yellowtail.

metrics
The gross domestic product (GDP) for 2017 is estimated at 4.5 billion US dollars. In purchasing power parity, GDP is $6.3 billion, or $9,100 per capita. Real growth was 2.1%. Guyana is one of the poorest countries in Latin America. Due to a planned expansion of oil production, however, the IMF expects per capita income to double within the next five years. In 2021, after the start of oil production, Guyana was one of the countries in Latin America with the highest gross domestic product per capita.

currency
The Guyana Dollar is abbreviated GYD according to ISO 4217.

The Guyanese dollar cannot be used outside the country and is subject to relatively high inflation. The smallest bill has a face value of 20 GYD, the largest one of 5000 GYD. In August 2017, 1 EUR was equivalent to 240.50 GYD. Credit cards are only accepted by larger shops and banks. The account will be debited in US dollars.

state budget
In 2017, the state budget included expenditure equivalent to US$1,152 million, compared to income equivalent to US$939 million. This results in a budget deficit of 5.9% of GDP.

Public debt was 52.3% of GDP in 2017.

In 2006, the share of government expenditure (in % of GDP) was as follows:
Health: 5.9%
Education: 8.3%
Military: 1.8%

 

Traffic

The most important transport hub is the capital, Georgetown. Connections with the interior are made by roads, footpaths, inland waterways and small airports.

streets
The entire road network comprised about 7,970 km in 2011, of which 509 km are paved. In Guyana, traffic drives on the left. Runways were built from the endpoints of river navigation to avoid rapids that were difficult to navigate. Other roads run from the coast to the bauxite mining districts of Linden on the Demerara River and Berbice on the Berbice River in eastern Guyana. A paved road runs along the coastal plain from Corriverton on the banks of the Corantijn, the border river with Suriname, via New Amsterdam and Georgetown to Charity on the north coast. The larger rivers are crossed by ferries.

rail transport
Guyana has a small rail network for freight traffic.

shipping
The most important seaport is Georgetown. Of the country's most important rivers, only the Demerara River is navigable for ore ships right into the mining areas. The other streams, the Essequibo and its main tributaries, the Rupununi, Potaro (with the Kaieteur Falls), Mazaruni and Cuyuni, are also important development arteries from the coast to the interior. However, they are criss-crossed by numerous rapids and waterfalls. In the sugar cane-growing region of the Coastal Plains, the canal network through the sugar cane fields is used—rather than difficult-to-maintain roads—to haul the cane crop to the factories on barges tied together and pulled by tractors from shore.

air traffic
There are two international airports, Cheddi Jagan International Airport, about 40 km south of Georgetown and Eugene F. Correira International Airport, about 6 km east of the capital. In addition, there are numerous paved and unpaved runways.

 

Culture

The culture is shaped by colonial history and by the two largest ethnic groups: the Afro-Guyaners, descendants of former slaves from Africa, and the Indian-Guyanese, descendants of contract workers brought to the country from the former British India from 1838 onwards.

The writer Wilson Harris (1921-2018) also became internationally known for his novels and essays.

public holidays
The largest religious groups are reflected i.a. also reflected in the holidays, Easter, Christmas, Holi and Diwali.

February 23 (1970) is a national holiday, Republic Day and at the same time the annual carnival day (Mashramani) with colorful costume parades, music bands and decorated floats.

 

Media

Guyana Chronicle, state daily newspaper (circulation approx. 40,000)
Stabroek News, independent weekly newspaper (circulation approx. 29,000)
Mirror, party newspaper PPP (circulation approx. 20,000)
New Nation, party newspaper PNC (circulation approx. 12,500)
Catholic Standard, weekly newspaper (circulation approx. 9000)
Guyana Broadcasting Corporation (state)
private cable television channels with airtime for government programming

 

Sports

Cricket is the most popular sport in Guyana and is considered a national sport.[53] Guyana is one of the countries that, with other Caribbean countries, forms the West Indies Cricket Team, one of the 'national teams' in international Test status cricket, the most prestigious form of the sport. The West Indies Cricket Team has competed in every Cricket World Cup, winning the first two editions in 1975 and 1979. They co-hosted with Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Grenada, Jamaica, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago of the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

Special Olympics Guyana was formed in the late 1970's and has participated in the Special Olympics World Games several times. The association has announced its participation in the Special Olympics World Summer Games 2023 in Berlin. The delegation will be looked after before the games as part of Neu-Isenburg's host town program.