Guyana#Geography

The name "Guyana" derives from Guiana, an earlier name for a larger region that included the areas now called Guyana (British Guyana), Suriname (Dutch Guiana), French Guiana, the Guayana Region in Venezuela (Spanish Guyana), and Amapá in Brazil (Portuguese Guiana). According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the name "Guyana" comes from an indigenous Amerindian language and means "land of many waters".{{cite web|url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/Guyana|title=Guyana|publisher=Oxford Dictionaries|access-date=9 May 2015|archive-date=7 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150707214123/http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/Guyana|url-status=dead}} The word Co‑operative in the official name refers to co-operative socialism.

{{Main|History of Guyana}}

{{stack|File:Essequibo River in 1826 Río Esequibo en 1826 Gran Colombia and British Guiana.jpg}}

What is now Guyana has been inhabited for millennia.{{Cite web|url=https://caribbean.loopnews.com/content/discoverguyana-indigenous-peoples-guyana|title=#DiscoverGuyana: Indigenous Peoples in Guyana {{pipe}} Loop Caribbean News|website=Loop News|access-date=18 September 2023|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628023001/https://caribbean.loopnews.com/content/discoverguyana-indigenous-peoples-guyana|url-status=live}} Nine indigenous tribes reside in Guyana: the Wai Wai, Macushi, Patamona, Lokono, Kalina, Wapishana, Pemon, Akawaio, and Warao. Many of these peoples practised shifting agriculture alongside hunting. Historians speculate that the Arawaks and Caribs originated in the South American hinterland and migrated northward, first to the present-day Guianas and then to the Caribbean islands. The Arawak, mainly cultivators, hunters, and fishermen, migrated to the Caribbean islands before the Carib and settled throughout the region.{{cite web|url=http://www.amerindian.gov.gy/discover/tribes/index.html|title=Ministry of Amerindian Affairs – Georgetown, Guyana|publisher=Amerindian.gov.gy|access-date=30 March 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130602173603/http://www.amerindian.gov.gy/discover/tribes/index.html|archive-date=2 June 2013}}

Although Christopher Columbus was the first European to sight Guyana during his third voyage (in 1498), and Sir Walter Raleigh wrote an account in 1596, the Dutch were the first Europeans to establish colonies: Pomeroon (1581), Essequibo (1616), Berbice (1627), and Demerara (1752). After France invaded the Dutch Republic (1795), the British assumed control in 1796, with the Dutch and British signing the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 in London that ceded Demerara-Essequibo and Berbice to Britain.{{cite web|url=http://www.san.beck.org/13-1a-SouthAmerica.html#a11|title=South America 1744–1817 by Sanderson Beck|access-date=24 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170101025206/http://www.san.beck.org/13-1a-SouthAmerica.html#a11|archive-date=1 January 2017|url-status=live}}

In 1831, the united colonies of Demerara-Essequibo and separate colony of Berbice together became a single British colony known as British Guiana.{{Cite web |date=2025-03-11 |title=Guyana - Colonialism, Independence, Culture {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Guyana/History |access-date=2025-03-13 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}

{{stack|File:Boundary lines of British Guiana 1896.jpg from 1896]]}}

Since its independence in 1824, Venezuela has claimed the area of land to the west of the Essequibo River. Simón Bolívar wrote to the British government warning against the Berbice and Demerara settlers settling on land which the Venezuelans, as assumed heirs of Spanish claims on the area dating to the 16th century, claimed was theirs. In 1899, an international tribunal ruled that the land belonged to Great Britain.{{Cite web|url=https://legal.un.org/riaa/cases/vol_XXVIII/331-340.pdf|title=Award regarding the Boundary between the Colony of British Guiana and the United States of Venezuela, decision of 3 October 1899|access-date=2 February 2020|archive-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730180322/https://legal.un.org/riaa/cases/vol_XXVIII/331-340.pdf|url-status=live}} From the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814, the British inherited Dutch territory which included lands between the Orinoco and Courantyne rivers. Dutch sovereignty over these settlements was recognised in 1648 by Spain with the Peace of Münster, which stated under Article 5 that the Dutch would retain all of the lordships, cities, castles, fortresses, trades and lands in the... West Indies{{cite news|date=2020-12-19|title=Facts and Timelines of Guyana, Venezuela Controversy.|url=https://guyanachronicle.com/2020/12/19/facts-and-timelines-of-guyana-venezuela-controversy/|work=Guyana Chronicle.|access-date=2023-11-29|archive-date=2 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231202154930/https://guyanachronicle.com/2020/12/19/facts-and-timelines-of-guyana-venezuela-controversy/|url-status=live}} under their possession at the time. However, the treaty did not specify the boundary between Spanish Guiana and Dutch Guiana.

Guyana achieved independence from the United Kingdom as a dominion on 26 May 1966 and became a republic on 23 February 1970, remaining a member of the Commonwealth.{{Cite journal |last=Hope |first=Kempe Ronald |date=1985 |title=Electoral politics and political development in post-independence Guyana |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0261379485900319 |journal=Electoral Studies |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=57–68 |doi=10.1016/0261-3794(85)90031-9 |issn=0261-3794|url-access=subscription }} Shortly after independence, Venezuela began to take diplomatic, economic, and military action against Guyana to enforce its territorial claim to the Essequibo region.{{Cite journal|last=Ince|first=Basil A.|date=1970|title=The Venezuela-Guyana Boundary Dispute in the United Nations|journal=Caribbean Studies|volume=9|issue=4|pages=5–26}} Five months after Guyana's independence, in October 1966, Venezuelan troops crossed the international border and seized Ankoko Island which has been under occupation ever since.{{Cite web|url=http://guyanachronicle.com/2018/04/06/guyana-wants-icj-to-order-venezuela-off-ankoko|title=Guyana wants ICJ to order Venezuela off Ankoko|date=6 April 2018|website=The Guyana Chronicle|access-date=2020-01-17}} Venezuelan troops quickly made military installations and an airstrip.{{Cite book|title=Latin America and Caribbean Contemporary Record: 1982-1983, Volume 2|last=Hopkins|first=Jack W.|publisher=Holmes & Meier Publishers|year=1984|isbn=9780841909618}}

Following independence, Forbes Burnham of the People's National Congress Reform rose to power, quickly becoming a repressive authoritarian leader.{{cite journal|last1=Bulkan|first1=Arif|last2=Trotz|first2=Alissa|date=2021|title=Oil Fuels Guyana's Internecine Conflict|journal=Current History|volume=120|issue=823|pages=71–77|doi=10.1525/curh.2021.120.823.71|doi-access=free|issn=0011-3530}} Politics became divided on race with the Afro-Guyanese supporting Burnham's People's National Congress and the Indo-Guyanese supporting Jagan's People's Progressive Party, in what became known as aapan jaat politics, loosely translated from Guyanese Hindustani as "for your own kind".

Guyana was elected three times as a member of the UN Security Council in 1975–76, 1982–83 and 2024–25.

In 1978, a total of 918 people died at the Jonestown mass murder-suicide led by American cult leader Jim Jones at a remote settlement in northwest Guyana.{{Cite web|title=Inside the Jonestown massacre - CNN.com|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2008/US/11/12/jonestown.factsheet/index.html|access-date=2022-09-27|website=CNN|archive-date=27 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220927223540/https://edition.cnn.com/2008/US/11/12/jonestown.factsheet/index.html|url-status=live}}

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter visited Guyana to lobby for the resumption of free elections. On 5 October 1992, a new National Assembly and regional councils were elected in the first Guyanese election since 1964 to be internationally recognised as free and fair. Cheddi Jagan of the PPP was elected and sworn in as president on 9 October 1992.{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/guyana/|title=Guyana|website=The World Factbook|publisher=Central Intelligence Agency|access-date=12 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230619025448/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/guyana/|archive-date=19 June 2023|url-status=live}} This reversed the monopoly that Afro-Guyanese traditionally had over Guyanese politics. The poll was marred by violence however.

In May 2008, President Bharrat Jagdeo was a signatory to the UNASUR Constitutive Treaty of the Union of South American Nations. The Guyanese government officially ratified the treaty in 2010.{{Cite web|url=https://guyanachronicle.com/2016/12/08/unasur-indifference-to-guyana/|title=UNASUR indifference to Guyana|website=Guyana Chronicle|date=9 December 2016|access-date=2 April 2021|archive-date=17 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417173233/https://guyanachronicle.com/2016/12/08/unasur-indifference-to-guyana/|url-status=live}}

In March 2020, President David A. Granger narrowly lost the snap elections, following Granger's government loss of a vote of no confidence back in 2018. Granger refused to accept the results, but eventually five months later, Irfaan Ali of the People's Progressive Party/Civic was sworn in as the new president because of allegations of fraud and irregularities.{{cite news|title=Guyana swears in Irfaan Ali as president after long stand-off|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-53637085|work=BBC News|date=3 August 2020|access-date=2 April 2021|archive-date=3 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803201857/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-53637085|url-status=live}}

The National Trust of Guyana has designated nine historic sites as national monuments.{{Cite web |title=National Trust of Guyana |url=https://dutchculture.nl/en/location/national-trust-guyana |access-date=2025-02-28 |website=dutchculture.nl |language=en}}

A referendum in neighbouring Venezuela was held in December 2023 on the annexation of the disputed Essequibo region, which lies entirely in the territory of Guyana.{{Cite news|date=2023-10-20|title=Venezuela sets referendum date on territory dispute with Guyana|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/venezuela-sets-referendum-date-territory-dispute-with-guyana-2023-10-20/|access-date=2023-11-24|archive-date=7 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231107045924/https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/venezuela-sets-referendum-date-territory-dispute-with-guyana-2023-10-20/|url-status=live}} The vote passed with a 95% majority, but with a low turnout, with analysts stating Maduro's government had falsified the results.{{citation|author=Luke Taylor|title=Maduro vote to claim Guyana's territory backfires as Venezuelans stay home|date=4 December 2023|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/dec/04/maduro-venezuela-guyana-essequibo-referendum-vote-turnout|newspaper=The Guardian|access-date=5 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231205053546/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/dec/04/maduro-venezuela-guyana-essequibo-referendum-vote-turnout|url-status=live|archive-date=5 December 2023}} This came at the same time as a Venezuelan military buildup on the Guyanese border, sparking concerns of war between the two states.

{{Main|Geography of Guyana}}

File:GuyanaKaieteurFalls2004.jpg is one of the world's most powerful waterfalls.]]

File:Rupununi Savannah.jpg]]

File:Amazon CIAT (5).jpg, the world's largest and most biodiverse tropical rainforest.]]

The territory controlled by Guyana lies between latitudes 1° and 9°N, and longitudes 56° and 62°W; it is one of the world's most sparsely populated countries.

The country can be divided into five natural regions: a narrow and fertile marshy plain along the Atlantic coast (low coastal plain) where most of the population lives; a white sand belt further inland (hilly sand and clay region), containing most of Guyana's mineral deposits; the dense rain forests (Forested Highland Region) in the southern part of the country; the drier savannah areas in the south-west; and the smallest interior lowlands (interior savannah) consisting mostly of mountains that gradually rise to the Brazilian border.

Some of Guyana's highest mountains are Mount Ayanganna ({{cvt|2042|m|ft|0|disp=or}}), Monte Caburaí ({{cvt|1465|m|ft|0|disp=or}}) and Mount Roraima ({{cvt|2772|m|ft|0|disp=or}} – the highest mountain in Guyana) on the Brazil-Guyana-Venezuela tripoint border, part of the Pakaraima range. Mount Roraima and Guyana's table-top mountains (tepuis) are said to have been the inspiration for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 1912 novel The Lost World. There are also many volcanic escarpments and waterfalls, including Kaieteur Falls which is one of the world's most powerful waterfalls. North of the Rupununi River lies the Rupununi savannah, south of which lie the Kanuku Mountains.

The four longest rivers are the Essequibo at {{cvt|1010|km|mi|0}} long, the Courentyne River at {{cvt|724|km|mi|0}}, the Berbice at {{cvt|595|km|mi|0}}, and the Demerara at {{cvt|346|km|mi|0}}. The Courentyne river forms the border with Suriname. At the mouth of the Essequibo are several large islands, including the {{cvt|145|km|mi|0}} wide Shell Beach along the northwest coast, which is also a major breeding area for sea turtles (mainly leatherbacks) and other wildlife.

The climate is tropical and generally hot and humid, though moderated by northeast trade winds along the coast. There are two rainy seasons, the first from May to mid-August, the second from mid-November to mid-January.

Guyana has one of the largest unspoiled rainforests in South America, some parts of which are almost inaccessible by humans.{{Cite news |last=Rushby |first=Kevin |date=2019-10-27 |title='We want to keep our forest': why Guyana's wilderness needs visitors |url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2019/oct/27/guyana-jungle-rainforest-community-run-wildlife-tour-adventure |access-date=2025-02-28 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}} The rich natural history of Guyana was described by early explorers Sir Walter Raleigh and Charles Waterton and later by naturalists Sir David Attenborough and Gerald Durrell. In 2008, the BBC broadcast a three-part programme called Lost Land of the Jaguar which highlighted the huge diversity of wildlife, including undiscovered species and rare species such as the giant otter and harpy eagle.

{{See also|Fauna of Guyana|List of protected areas of Guyana|Category:Flora of Guyana|Category:Fauna of Guyana|Category:Orchids of Guyana}}

File:Guyana BMNG.png

Guyana has one of the highest levels of biodiversity in the world. It is home to more than 225 species of mammals, 900 species of birds, 880 species of reptiles, and more than 6,500 species of plants.{{Cite web|last=Tavani|first=Claudia|date=14 August 2018|title=The Most Amazing Wildlife in Guyana|url=https://myadventuresacrosstheworld.com/wildlife-in-guyana/|access-date=3 September 2019|website=My Adventures Across the World|language=en-US|archive-date=3 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190903034604/https://myadventuresacrosstheworld.com/wildlife-in-guyana/|url-status=live}} Among these, the most famous are the arapaima, which is the world's largest scaled freshwater fish; the giant anteater, the largest anteater; the giant otter, the world's largest and rarest river otter; and the Guianan cock-of-the-rock bird (Rupicola rupicola).Attenborough, S. 1998 BBC. The Life of Birds. p. 211. {{ISBN|0563-38792-0}}

The following habitats have been categorised for Guyana: coastal, marine, littoral, estuarine, palustrine, mangrove, riverine, lacustrine, swamp, savanna, white sand forest, brown sand forest, montane, cloud forest, moist lowland and dry evergreen scrub forests (NBAP, 1999). About 14 areas of biological interest have been identified as possible hotspots for a National Protected Area System.

More than 80% of Guyana is still covered by forests, which also contain the world's rarest orchids, ranging from dry evergreen and seasonal forests to montane and lowland evergreen rain forests. These forests are home to more than a thousand species of trees. Guyana's tropical climate, unique geology, and relatively undisturbed ecosystems support extensive areas of species-rich rain forests and natural habitats with high levels of endemism. There are about 8000 species of plants in Guyana, half of which are found nowhere else.

The country is home to six ecoregions: Guayanan Highlands moist forests, Guianan moist forests, Orinoco Delta swamp forests, Tepuis, Guianan savanna, and Guianan mangroves.{{cite journal|last1=Dinerstein|first1=Eric|last2=Olson|first2=David|last3=Joshi|first3=Anup|last4=Vynne|first4=Carly|last5=Burgess|first5=Neil D.|last6=Wikramanayake|first6=Eric|last7=Hahn|first7=Nathan|last8=Palminteri|first8=Suzanne|last9=Hedao|first9=Prashant|last10=Noss|first10=Reed|last11=Hansen|first11=Matt|last12=Locke|first12=Harvey|last13=Ellis|first13=Erle C|last14=Jones|first14=Benjamin|last15=Barber|first15=Charles Victor|last16=Hayes|first16=Randy|last17=Kormos|first17=Cyril|last18=Martin|first18=Vance|last19=Crist|first19=Eileen|last20=Sechrest|first20=Wes|last21=Price|first21=Lori|last22=Baillie|first22=Jonathan E. M.|last23=Weeden|first23=Don|last24=Suckling|first24=Kierán|last25=Davis|first25=Crystal|last26=Sizer|first26=Nigel|last27=Moore|first27=Rebecca|last28=Thau|first28=David|last29=Birch|first29=Tanya|last30=Potapov|first30=Peter|last31=Turubanova|first31=Svetlana|last32=Tyukavina|first32=Alexandra|last33=de Souza|first33=Nadia|last34=Pintea|first34=Lilian|last35=Brito|first35=José C.|last36=Llewellyn|first36=Othman A.|last37=Miller|first37=Anthony G.|last38=Patzelt|first38=Annette|last39=Ghazanfar|first39=Shahina A.|last40=Timberlake|first40=Jonathan|last41=Klöser|first41=Heinz|last42=Shennan-Farpón|first42=Yara|last43=Kindt|first43=Roeland|last44=Lillesø|first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow|last45=van Breugel|first45=Paulo|last46=Graudal|first46=Lars|last47=Voge|first47=Maianna|last48=Al-Shammari|first48=Khalaf F.|last49=Saleem|first49=Muhammad|title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm|journal=BioScience|volume=67|issue=6|year=2017|pages=534–545|issn=0006-3568|doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014|pmid=28608869|pmc=5451287}} The Guiana Shield region is little known and extremely rich biologically. Unlike other areas of South America, over 70% of the natural habitat remains pristine. File:Golden frog Kaieteur (2).jpg in Kaieteur National Park, endemic to Guyana]]

The rich natural history of British Guiana was described by early explorers Sir Walter Raleigh and Charles Waterton and later by naturalists Sir David Attenborough and Gerald Durrell. Southern Guyana is host to some of the most pristine expanses of evergreen forests in the northern part of South America. Most of the forests found are tall, evergreen hill-land and lower montane forests, with large expanses of flooded forest along major rivers. Thanks to the very low human population density of the area, most of these forests are still intact.

The Smithsonian Institution has identified nearly 2,700 species of plants from this region, representing 239 families, and there are certainly additional species still to be recorded.{{Citation needed|date=April 2024}} The diversity of plants supports diverse animal life, recently documented by a biological survey organised by Conservation International. The reportedly clean, unpolluted waters of the Essequibo watershed support a remarkable diversity of fish and aquatic invertebrates, and are home to giant otters, capybaras, and several species of caimans.

On land, large mammals, such as jaguars, tapirs, bush dogs, giant anteaters, and saki monkeys are still common. Over 800 species of birds have been reported from the region, and the reptile and amphibian faunas are similarly rich.

In February 2004, the Government of Guyana issued a title to more than {{cvt|1|e6acre|km2|order=flip}} of land in the Konashen Indigenous District as the Kanashen Community-Owned Conservation Area, managed by the Wai Wai, and the world's largest community-owned conservation area.{{cite web|url=http://www.conservation.org/Documents/CI_Konashen_COCA_Biodiversity_Booklet.pdf|title=Biodiversity in the Konashen Community-Owned Conservation Area, Guyana|access-date=2 May 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101206142519/http://www.conservation.org/Documents/CI_Konashen_COCA_Biodiversity_Booklet.pdf|archive-date=6 December 2010}} The Iwokrama International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development was also created for the protection and sustainable use of the Iwokrama forest area. Since 2009, Guyana and Norway have collaborated to promote green development in Guyana while keeping deforestation at low levels.{{Cite web|date=2020-06-05|title=Guyana|url=https://www.nicfi.no/partner-countries/guyana/|access-date=2023-02-27|website=NICFI|language=en|archive-date=27 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230227153505/https://www.nicfi.no/partner-countries/guyana/|url-status=live}}

{{Main|Economy of Guyana|Agriculture in Guyana}}

{{See also|List of companies of Guyana}}

File:Tractor in field of rice by Khirsah1.jpg

The main economic activities in Guyana are agriculture (rice and Demerara sugar), bauxite and gold mining, timber, seafood, minerals, crude oil and natural gas. Guyana's gold production in 2015 is 14 metric tons.{{Cite web |title=Gold production |url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/gold-production?tab=table |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231129233804/https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/gold-production?tab=table |archive-date=29 November 2023 |access-date=2024-12-19 |website=Our World in Data |url-status=live }}

The discovery of major crude oil reserves off the Atlantic coast has since made a large impact on Guyana's GDP since drilling began in 2019. GDP grew sharply (43%) through the COVID-19 pandemic year of 2020, and is anticipated to continue at a high level in 2021 (estimated at 20%). The non-oil sectors contracted as public health measures were in place to control the virus spread; the growth of GDP rests on the oil sector for these two years.{{cite news|url=https://guyanachronicle.com/2021/04/07/economy-to-grow-16-4-per-cent/|title=Economy to grow 16.4 per cent|first=Vishani|last=Ragobeer|date=7 April 2021|work=Guyana Chronicle|access-date=4 November 2021|quote=While presenting the 2021 National Budget in February, Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh, noted that Guyana's growth in 2020 was actually 43.5 per cent. The IMF's revised growth rate for 2020 (43.4 per cent) is now closely aligned with the figures provided by the senior minister. Meanwhile, in February also, the Dr. Singh projected that Guyana's economy is expected to grow by 20.9 per cent in 2021. ... Based on the World Bank's latest estimates, the country is set to record economic growth of 20.9 per cent at the end of 2021, 26.0 per cent in 2022 and 23.0 per cent in 2023.|archive-date=4 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211104112912/https://guyanachronicle.com/2021/04/07/economy-to-grow-16-4-per-cent/|url-status=live}}

In December 2024, Guyana is projected to be the third largest per capita petroleum producing country in the world.{{cite web |last=Wilkinson |first=Bert |title=Guyana now third largest per-capita oil producer in the world – Caribbean Life |website=Caribbean Life |date=2024-12-20 |url=https://www.caribbeanlife.com/guyana-now-third-largest-per-capita-oil-producer-in-the-world/ |access-date=2024-12-20}}

Preservation of Guyana's pristine forests has been a key component for receiving international aid through REDD programmes.

• GDP: US$4.121 billion ($5,252 per capita, 2019 est.)
• GDP growth rate: 86.7% (2020){{cite web|title=Global Economic Prospects, January 2020: Slow Growth, Policy Challenges|url=https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/33044/9781464814693.pdf|access-date=14 January 2020|department=openknowledge.worldbank.org|publisher=World Bank|page=101|archive-date=12 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201212055511/https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/33044/9781464814693.pdf|url-status=live}}
• Inflation: 5.03% (2021){{Cite web|title=Guyana|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/guyana/#economy|access-date=2023-12-22|website=The World Factbook|archive-date=7 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210107032754/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/guyana/#economy|url-status=live}}
• Unemployment: 16.42% (2021)
• Arable land: 2% (2018 estimate)
• Labour force: 324,943 (2019){{cite web|title=Labor force, total – Guyana|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.TOTL.IN?locations=GY|access-date=14 January 2020|department=data.worldbank.org|publisher=World Bank|archive-date=14 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200114091125/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.TOTL.IN%3Flocations%3DGY|url-status=live}}
• Agricultural produce: sugar, rice, vegetable oils, beef, pork, poultry, dairy products, fish, shrimp
• Industrial production: bauxite, sugar, rice milling, timber, textiles, gold mining
• Major export products: Crude Petroleum 85.9% ($15.9B), Gold 7.36% ($1.36B), Rice 2.32% ($429M), Aluminium Ore 1.04% ($192M), and Hard Liquor 0.65% ($120M). (2022){{Cite web|title=Guyana (GUY) Exports, Imports, and Trade Partners|url=https://oec.world/en/profile/country/guy|access-date=2024-06-14|website=The Observatory of Economic Complexity|language=en|archive-date=13 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230513110611/https://oec.world/en/profile/country/guy|url-status=live}}
• Exports: US$18.5 billion; Panama 31.6%, Netherlands 15.5%, United States 12.8%, United Arab Emirates 6.39%, and Italy 6.35%. (2022)
• Major import products: Refined Petroleum 11.8% ($441M), Valves 5.48% ($206M), Cars 2.87% ($108M), Large Construction Vehicles 2.81% ($106M), and Delivery Trucks 2.18% ($81.7M). (2022)
• Imports: US$3.75 billion; United States 27.8%, China 14.3%, Brazil 7.06%, Trinidad and Tobago 6.84%, and Suriname 4.23%. (2022)

The earliest residents of Guyana employed a variety of agricultural practices for subsistence living but also had extensive networks of trade, dealing in items such as blow pipes, curare, cassava graters, and other essentials. These trade networks were important even at the time of the earliest European contact, and Dutch traders were inclined to gift the local peoples in order to maintain successful settlements.{{Cite web|last=Whitaker|first=James Andrew|date=December 2017|title=Guns and Sorcery: Raiding, Trading, and Kanaima among the Makushi|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329972388|access-date=2021-03-04|website=ResearchGate|language=en}}

After the initial rush to find gold in the New World waned, the Dutch found the climate to be suitable for growing sugar cane, converting large tracts of the Guyanese coast into plantations and supplying with labour from the Atlantic slave trade. The country and economy were run by a small European planter elite{{Cite book|last=Beaumont|first=Joseph|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FwJVAAAAcAAJ&q=indentured+servitude+british+guiana&pg=PA9|title=The New Slavery: An Account of the Indian and Chinese Immigrants in British Guiana|date=1871|publisher=W. Ridgway|pages=8–9|language=en|access-date=1 May 2021|archive-date=31 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210531024708/https://books.google.com/books?id=FwJVAAAAcAAJ&q=indentured+servitude+british+guiana&pg=PA9|url-status=live}} which continued on when the colonies of the territory were merged and the land was given over to the British Empire in 1814. Upon emancipation in 1838, almost all of the former slaves abandoned the plantations, and Indians were brought to the country under indenture contracts from 1838 until the end of the system in 1917.{{Cite web|title=Guyana – HISTORY OF THE ECONOMY|url=http://countrystudies.us/guyana/54.htm|access-date=2021-03-04|website=countrystudies.us|archive-date=6 July 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090706235649/http://countrystudies.us/guyana/54.htm|url-status=live}}

The production of balatá (natural latex) was once a big business in Guyana. Most of the balatá bleeding in Guyana took place in the foothills of the Kanuku Mountains in the Rupununi savannah. Early exploitation also took place in the North West District, but most of the trees in the area were destroyed by illicit bleeding methods that involved cutting down the trees rather than making incisions in them. Uses of balatá included the making of cricket balls, temporary dental fillings, and the crafting of figurines and other decorative items (particularly by the Macushi people).

When the country gained independence from British rule, a policy of nationalisation was enacted by Forbes Burnham to address the inequities that were established by plantation-based colonial rule. All large-scale industries such as foreign-owned bauxite mining (Reynolds Metals and Rio Tinto's Alcan) and sugar (GuySuCo) operations were taken over by the government. However, the economy under nationalisation was plagued by problems; political instability leading to an exodus of skilled labour, inexperienced management, aging infrastructure. Poor international market conditions also expanded the country's debt.{{Cite web|title=Guyana – HISTORY OF THE ECONOMY – Postindependence|url=http://countrystudies.us/guyana/55.htm|access-date=2021-03-04|website=countrystudies.us|archive-date=16 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210516152906/http://countrystudies.us/guyana/55.htm|url-status=live}}

The Guyanese economy rebounded slightly and exhibited moderate economic growth after 1999, due to expansion in the agricultural and mining sectors, a more favourable atmosphere for business initiatives, a more realistic exchange rate, fairly low inflation, and the continued support of international organisations. Guyana held huge amounts of debt which have been written off through various international agencies. In 2003 Guyana qualified for US$329 million of debt relief, in addition to the US$256 million from the original World Bank plan for assisting heavily indebted poor countries in 1999. The Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative in 2006/7 wrote off about US$611 million of Guyana's debt by the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank. In 2006, Japan finalised its bilateral debt cancellation agreement, in 2007, US$15 million was written off by China and in 2008, Venezuela cancelled US$12.5 million.{{Cite web|date=15 April 2009|title=International Development Association Country Assistance Strategy for Guyana for the Period FY 2009–2012|url=http://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/162121468035426088/pdf/479830CAS0P106101Official0Use0Only1.pdf|access-date=2021-02-28|page=7|archive-date=17 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417174201/http://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/162121468035426088/pdf/479830CAS0P106101Official0Use0Only1.pdf|url-status=live}}

In 2008, the economy witnessed a 3% increase in growth amid the 2008 financial crisis; it grew 5.4% in 2011 and 3.7% in 2012. IMF projected economic growth to be 53% in 2020 following the completion of the first off-shore oil project.{{Cite news|title=World Economy May Be Crashing But Guyana Still Seen Growing 53%|last=Bristow|first=Matthew|work=Bloomberg.com|date=14 April 2020|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-14/world-economy-may-be-crashing-but-guyana-still-seen-growing-53|access-date=2 May 2020|archive-date=4 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200504072244/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-14/world-economy-may-be-crashing-but-guyana-still-seen-growing-53|url-status=live}} Actual growth in GDP in 2020 was 43%; reports in April 2021 anticipate 20% growth for 2021.

The government initiated a major overhaul of the tax code in early 2007. A Value Added Tax (VAT) replaced six different taxes. Prior to the implementation of the VAT, it had been relatively easy to evade sales tax, and many businesses were in violation of tax code. Many businesses opposed VAT introduction because of the extra paperwork required; however, the Government has remained firm on the VAT. Replacing several taxes with one flat tax rate, it will also be easier for government auditors to spot tax evasion.

{{Main|Demographics of Guyana|Guyanese people}}

File:Guyana population density.png

File:Population Guyana.PNG

The large majority (about 90%) of Guyana's 744,000 people live along a narrow coastal strip that ranges from a width of {{cvt|10|to|40|mi|order=flip}} inland and makes up approximately 10% of the nation's total land area.{{cite web|url=http://www.geographia.com/guyana/geninfo.html|title=Guyana General Information|publisher=Geographia.com|access-date=2 May 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100411064504/http://www.geographia.com/Guyana/geninfo.html|archive-date=11 April 2010|url-status=dead}}

Guyana's population is racially and ethnically heterogeneous, with ethnic groups originating from India, Africa, Europe, and China, as well as Indigenous peoples. Despite their diverse ethnic backgrounds, most groups share a common language of English and its Guyanese English Creole vernacular.

The largest ethnic group is the Indo-Guyanese (also known as East Indians), the descendants of indentured labourers from India who make up 43.5% of the population, according to the 2002 census. They are followed by the Afro-Guyanese, the descendants of enslaved people brought from Africa, primarily West Africa, who constitute 30.2%. The Guyanese of mixed heritage make up 16.7%.

The Indigenous peoples, known locally as Amerindians, make up 10.5% of the population.{{cite web|title=Indigenous Peoples in Guyana|url=https://indigenousnavigator.org/guyana|website=Indigenous Navigator|access-date=17 October 2024}} The nine Indigenous nations in Guyana, defined by language, are the Akawaio, Arawak (Lokono), Arekuna (Pemon), Carib (Karinya), Makushi, Patamona, Wai Wai, Wapichan, and Warao. They are the third-largest demographic group in the country and are the majority population in the southern interior.

The Afro-Guyanese population mainly descend from West African ethnicities such as the Ashanti from Ghana, the Yoruba from Southwest Nigeria, the Igbo from South-Eastern Nigeria, and the Mandingo from Senegal.{{cite web|last1=Roopnarine|first1=Lomarsh|title=A long journey to Emancipation|url=https://guyanachronicle.com/2021/07/25/a-long-journey-to-emancipation/|website=Guyana Chronicle|date=25 July 2021|access-date=17 April 2023|archive-date=17 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230417020356/https://guyanachronicle.com/2021/07/25/a-long-journey-to-emancipation/|url-status=live}} Most Indo-Guyanese are descended from indentured labourers who migrated from North India, especially the Bhojpur and Awadh regions of the Hindi Belt in the present-day states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Jharkhand.{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/musicofhindutrin00myer|url-access=registration|page=[https://archive.org/details/musicofhindutrin00myer/page/30 30]|title=Music of Hindu Trinidad|publisher=University of Chicago Press|first=Helen|last=Myers|isbn=9780226554532|year=1999}} A significant minority of Indo-Guyanese are also descended from indentured migrants who came from the South Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh; these are the plurality ancestry in the East Berbice-Corentyne region.{{cite book|url=http://indiandiaspora.nic.in/diasporapdf/chapter17.pdf|title=Indian Diaspora|access-date=3 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430175036/http://indiandiaspora.nic.in/diasporapdf/chapter17.pdf|archive-date=30 April 2011|url-status=dead}}

The two largest groups, the Indo-Guyanese and Afro-Guyanese, have experienced some racial tension.[https://www.bbc.co.uk/caribbean/news/story/2005/09/050920_guyana_race.shtml "Guyana turns attention to racism"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101202071027/http://www.bbc.co.uk/caribbean/news/story/2005/09/050920_guyana_race.shtml |date=2 December 2010}}. BBC News. 20 September 2005."[http://www.guyana.org/features/conflicts_indiansandblacks.html Conflict between Guyanese-Indians and Blacks in Trinidad and Guyana Socially, Economically and Politically] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101202013914/http://www.guyana.org/features/conflicts_indiansandblacks.html |date=2 December 2010}}". Gabrielle Hookumchand, Professor Moses Seenarine. 18 May 2000.[http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/265657/20111212/guyana-politics-election-blacks-indians-ramotar-ppp.htm International Business Times: "Guyana: A Study in Polarized Racial Politics"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120715075007/http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/265657/20111212/guyana-politics-election-blacks-indians-ramotar-ppp.htm |date=15 July 2012}} 12 December 2011

{{Main|Languages of Guyana}}

English is the official language of Guyana and is used for education, government, media, and services. The vast majority of the population speaks Guyanese Creole, an English-based creole with slight African, Indian, and Amerindian influences, as their first language.Damoiseau, Robert (2003) Eléments de grammaire comparée français-créole guyanais Ibis rouge, Guyana, {{ISBN|2-84450-192-3}}

Indigenous Cariban languages (Akawaio, Wai-Wai, and Macushi) are spoken by a small minority of Amerindians.

Guyanese Hindustani is spoken by the older generation of the Indo-Guyanese community, but younger Guyanese use English or Guyanese Creole. Indo-Surinamese immigrants from Suriname speak the Sarnami variant, especially the Nickerian-Berbician Hindustani subdialect.{{Cite thesis|last=Gambhir|first=Surendra Kumar|date=1981|title=The East Indian Speech Community in Guyana: A Sociolinguistic Study With Special Reference to Koine Formation.|url=https://repository.upenn.edu/dissertations/AAI8207963|type=PhD dissertation|publisher=University of Pennsylvania|pages=1–367|access-date=7 March 2021|archive-date=30 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210430150912/https://repository.upenn.edu/dissertations/AAI8207963/|url-status=live|id={{ProQuest|303192456}}}}

{{Main|Religion in Guyana}}

File:Central Vaidik Mandir, Georgetown, Guyana..jpg

In 2012 the population was 64% Christian, 25% Hindu, 7% Muslim, 3% irreligious and 1% of other faiths.{{Cite web|title=Guyana|url=https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-report-on-international-religious-freedom/guyana/|access-date=2023-12-07|website=United States Department of State|language=en-US|archive-date=7 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231207180431/https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-report-on-international-religious-freedom/guyana/|url-status=live}}

Religion is an important aspect of identity in Guyana and reflects the various external influences of colonialism and immigrant groups. Christianity was considered the prestigious religion, transmitting European culture and representing upward mobility in the colonial society. Missionaries and churches built schools, and until nationalisation in the 1970s, nearly all schools were denominational. When Indians were brought to the country as indentured labour, Hinduism and Islam gained prominence, but for some decades neither were acknowledged for legal marriage.{{Cite book|last=Williams|first=Brackette F.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-Nx49xkfu-YC&q=christian&pg=PA298|title=Stains on My Name, War in My Veins: Guyana and the Politics of Cultural Struggle|date=1991-04-12|publisher=Duke University Press|isbn=978-0-8223-1119-5|language=en|access-date=1 May 2021|archive-date=31 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210531024830/https://books.google.com/books?id=-Nx49xkfu-YC&q=christian&pg=PA298|url-status=live}}

Some traditional African and Amerindian spiritual beliefs remain alongside the dominant religions.

{{Main|Health in Guyana}}

Life expectancy at birth is estimated to be 69.5 years as of 2020.{{Cite web|title=South America :: Guyana — The World Factbook – Central Intelligence Agency|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/guyana/|access-date=2020-12-10|website=www.cia.gov|archive-date=7 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210107032754/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/guyana/|url-status=live}}

The PAHO/ WHO Global Health Report 2014 (using statistics of 2012) ranked the country as having the highest suicide rate in the world, with a mortality rate of 44.2 per 100,000 inhabitants.{{Cite web|url=http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/131056/1/9789241564779_eng.pdf?ua=1&ua=1|title=WHO Report 2014 Preventing suicide: A global imperative.|access-date=4 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150616024658/http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/131056/1/9789241564779_eng.pdf?ua=1&ua=1|archive-date=16 June 2015|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/news/americas/21616972-when-it-comes-people-taking-their-own-lives-guyana-leads-world-desperate-measures|title=Desperate measures|date=13 September 2014|newspaper=The Economist|access-date=29 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170610122736/http://www.economist.com/news/americas/21616972-when-it-comes-people-taking-their-own-lives-guyana-leads-world-desperate-measures|archive-date=10 June 2017|url-status=live}} According to 2011 estimates from the WHO, HIV prevalence is 1.2% of the teen/adult population (ages 15–49).[https://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/EN_WHS2011_Part1.pdf WHO Health-Related Millennium Development Goals Report 2011] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120617072744/http://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/EN_WHS2011_Part1.pdf |date=17 June 2012}}. Part1

{{Main|Education in Guyana}}Education in Guyana was primarily introduced and operated by missionising Christian denominations. The wealthy planter elite often sent their children for education abroad in England, but as schools improved in Guyana, they also modelled after the former British education system. Primary education became compulsory in 1876, although the need for children to assist in agricultural labour kept many children from schooling. In the 1960s, the government took over control of all schools in the country. Fees were removed, new schools were opened in rural areas, and the University of Guyana was established so students no longer were required to go abroad for tertiary education.{{Cite web|title=Guyana – EDUCATION|url=http://countrystudies.us/guyana/44.htm|access-date=2021-03-06|website=countrystudies.us|archive-date=14 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210814064255/http://countrystudies.us/guyana/44.htm|url-status=live}}File:Queens College Guyana.jpg]]Guyana's literacy was one of the highest in the Caribbean, by estimated literacy rate of 96 per cent in 1990. In a 2014 UNESCO estimate, literacy is 96.7 in the 15–24 year old age group.{{Cite web|date=2016-11-27|title=Guyana|url=http://uis.unesco.org/en/country/gy|access-date=2021-03-06|website=uis.unesco.org|archive-date=2 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302112953/http://uis.unesco.org/en/country/gy|url-status=live}} However, the functional literacy may be only as high as 70%.{{Cite journal|last=Jennings|first=Zellyne|date=2000-05-01|title=Functional literacy of Young Guyanese Adults|url=https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003926406978|journal=International Review of Education|language=en|volume=46|issue=1|pages=93–116|doi=10.1023/A:1003926406978|bibcode=2000IREdu..46...93J|s2cid=142861368|issn=1573-0638|url-access=subscription}}

Students are expected to take the NGSA (National Grade Six Assessment) for entrance into high school in grade 7. They take the CXC at the end of high school. Schools have introduced the CAPE exams which all other Caribbean countries have introduced. The A-level system, inherited from the British era, is offered only in a few schools.

Infrastructure challenges affect access to education, especially for students in the hinterland. A World Bank assessment showed roughly 50% of teachers were "untrained, operated with inadequate teaching materials, and served children of parents with low levels of adult literacy".{{Cite web|title=Improving Literacy and Numeracy Outcomes for Guyana's Early Learners|url=https://www.worldbank.org/en/results/2019/04/26/improving-literacy-and-numeracy-outcomes-for-guyana-early-learners|access-date=2021-03-06|website=World Bank|language=en|archive-date=17 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417175711/https://www.worldbank.org/en/results/2019/04/26/improving-literacy-and-numeracy-outcomes-for-guyana-early-learners|url-status=live}}

{{Main|Politics of Guyana}}

File:Old residence.jpg

File:20191121 Guyana 0062 Georgetown sRGB (49295972987).jpg

File:Parliament building, Guyana.jpg

The politics of Guyana takes place in a framework of a Parliamentary representative democratic republic, in which the President of Guyana is both head of state and head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the President and the Government. Legislative power is vested in both the President and the National Assembly of Guyana.{{Cite web|title=Guyana – government institutions|url=http://countrystudies.us/guyana/76.htm|access-date=2021-03-04|website=countrystudies.us|archive-date=7 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160407052814/http://countrystudies.us/guyana/76.htm|url-status=live}} Historically, politics is a source of tension in the country, and violent riots have often broken out during elections.

During the 1970s and 1980s, the political landscape was dominated by the People's National Congress.{{Cite web|title=Guyana – Political Parties|url=http://countrystudies.us/guyana/83.htm|access-date=2021-03-04|website=countrystudies.us|archive-date=7 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160407054218/http://countrystudies.us/guyana/83.htm|url-status=live}}

In 1992, the first constitutional elections were overseen by former United States President Jimmy Carter, and the People's Progressive Party led the country until 2015. The two parties are principally organised along ethnic lines and as a result, often clash on issues related to the allocation of resources. In the General Elections held on 28 November 2011, the People's Progressive Party (PPP) retained a majority, and their presidential candidate Donald Ramotar was elected as president.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-15980149|title=Guyana governing party's Donald Ramotar wins presidency|work=BBC News|date=2 December 2011|access-date=2 April 2021|archive-date=17 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417170255/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-15980149|url-status=live}}

On 11 May 2015, early general elections were held. A coalition of the A Partnership for National Unity-Alliance for Change (APNU-AFC) parties won 33 of the 65 seats in the National Assembly. On 16 May 2015, retired army general David A. Granger became the eighth President of Guyana.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-32747514|title=Ex-general David Granger wins Guyana election|work=BBC News|date=15 May 2015|access-date=2 April 2021|archive-date=17 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417170813/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-32747514|url-status=live}} However, on 21 December 2018, a vote of confidence was called for, regarding terms under which the government granted a franchise for offshore oil exploration. Legislator Charrandass Persaud defected from the coalition and the vote failed, requiring new elections. The governing coalition litigated this result for the entire 90 days allowed for new elections. New elections were held on 2 March 2020, and results were declared on 3 August 2020, with the People's Progressive Party/Civic as the winner. Mohamed Irfaan Ali became the ninth President of Guyana.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-53637085|title=Guyana swears in Irfaan Ali as president after long stand-off|work=BBC News|date=3 August 2020|access-date=2 April 2021|archive-date=3 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803201857/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-53637085|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=http://guyanachronicle.com/2019/03/21/ruling-on-confidence-vote-appeal-friday|title=Ruling on confidence vote appeal Friday|first=Svetlana|last=Marshall|publisher=Guyana Chronicle|date=21 March 2019|access-date=22 March 2019|archive-date=22 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190322111824/http://guyanachronicle.com/2019/03/21/ruling-on-confidence-vote-appeal-friday|url-status=live}}

There is a conflict between Guyana and Venezuela concerning the Essequibo region, Guyana–Venezuela territorial dispute. After years of fruitless mediation, Guyana went to the International Court of Justice in 2018, asking judges to rule that the 1899 border decision by an international panel of arbiters is valid and binding. Venezuela argues that a 1966 agreement to resolve the dispute effectively nullified the original arbitration. The ICJ has ruled the case is admissible and that it has jurisdiction, but it is expected to take years to reach a final decision. On Sunday, 3 December 2023, Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro convoked a referendum to ask Venezuelan electors five questions, including whether to create a Venezuelan state in Essequibo and whether voters support granting Venezuelan citizenship to the region's current and future residents. Venezuela does not recognise the U.N. panel's jurisdiction over the decades-old dispute, but the country's Vice President Delcy Rodríguez nonetheless characterised the ruling as a "victory for Venezuela," given that the U.N. did not order a halt to the referendum plans.

{{Cite web|title=UN court bars Venezuela from altering Guyana's control over disputed territory.|url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/court-ruling-request-order-venezuela-halt-part-referendum-105299460.|first=Mike|last=Corder|work=ABC News|publisher=Associated Press|date=2 November 2023|access-date=2 December 2023|archive-date=2 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231202140232/https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/court-ruling-request-order-venezuela-halt-part-referendum-105299460.|url-status=live}}

Public procurement in Guyana is overseen by the Public Procurement Commission, appointed under the Public Procurement Commission Act 2003. Due to lengthy delay in identifying and agreeing commission members, the commission was not appointed until 2016.[https://www.cips.org/supply-management/news/2016/august/guyana-hands-procurement-to-commission/ After 14 years, Guyana establishes procurement commission] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161021131901/https://www.cips.org/supply-management/news/2016/august/guyana-hands-procurement-to-commission/ |date=21 October 2016}}, "Supply Management", 12 August 2016, accessed 1 October 2016

{{Main|Guyana Defence Force}}

The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) is the military service of Guyana. It maintains strong military relations with Brazil, with which it collaborates on border security through yearly regional military exchange gatherings. Guyana also has an ongoing partnership with the United States Army to enhance the country's military readiness and capabilities to respond to security threats.{{cite web|title=U.S. Army, Guyana Defence Forces Strengthen Military Partnership|url=https://gy.usembassy.gov/u-s-army-guyana-defence-forces-strengthen-military-partnership/|website=U.S. Embassy Guyana|date=28 November 2023|access-date=26 January 2024|archive-date=5 January 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240105153815/https://gy.usembassy.gov/u-s-army-guyana-defence-forces-strengthen-military-partnership/|url-status=live}}

{{See also|LGBT rights in Guyana}}

Homosexual acts, as well as anal and oral sex, are illegal in Guyana.{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/gay-lesbian-bisexual-relationships-illegal-in-74-countries-a7033666.html|title=LGBT relationships are illegal in 74 countries, research finds|work=The Independent|date=17 May 2016|access-date=29 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827151517/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/gay-lesbian-bisexual-relationships-illegal-in-74-countries-a7033666.html|archive-date=27 August 2017|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}} It is currently the only country in South America that prohibits such acts. Engaging in such acts can warrant life imprisonment, though the prohibition is not enforced. These laws can be difficult to alter, as Guyana's Constitution protects laws inherited from the British Empire from constitutional review.{{cite web|last1=Burham|first1=Margaret A.|title=Saving Constitutional Rights from Judicial Scrutiny: The Savings Clause in the Law of the Commonwealth Caribbean|url=https://repository.law.miami.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1159&context=umialr|website=miami.edu|access-date=26 June 2020|archive-date=28 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180628205146/https://repository.law.miami.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1159&context=umialr|url-status=live}} However, cross-dressing has been legal since 2018, when a ban was struck down by Guyana's court of last resort, the Caribbean Court of Justice.{{cite web|url=https://www.ccj.org/ccj-declares-guyanas-cross-dressing-law-unconstitutional/|title=CCJ Declares Guyana's Cross-Dressing Law Unconstitutional|work=Caribbean Court of Justice |publisher=The Caribbean Court of Justice|date=13 November 2018|access-date=4 August 2020|archive-date=20 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220105715/http://www.ccj.org/news/ccj-declares-guyanas-cross-dressing-law-unconstitutional|url-status=live |last1=Wright |first1=Charmaine }} President David A. Granger (2015–2020) expressed support for these efforts.{{cite web|url=https://guyanachronicle.com/2016/01/06/president-to-respect-lgbt-rights/|title=President to respect LGBT rights|publisher=Guyana Chronicle|date=6 January 2016|access-date=4 August 2020|archive-date=24 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124012800/https://guyanachronicle.com/2016/01/06/president-to-respect-lgbt-rights/|url-status=live}}

=== Regions and Neighbourhood Councils ===

{{Main|Regions of Guyana|Neighbourhood Councils of Guyana}}{{Imageframe|width=350|content=175px 175px|caption=Regions of Guyana by number and name|link=|align=right}}Guyana is divided into 10 regions:[http://www.statisticsguyana.gov.gy/pubs/Chapter3_Population_Redistribution_Internal_Migration.pdf Bureau of Statistics – Guyana] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120217151423/http://www.statisticsguyana.gov.gy/pubs/Chapter3_Population_Redistribution_Internal_Migration.pdf |date=17 February 2012}}, CHAPTER III: POPULATION REDISTRIBUTION AND INTERNAL MIGRATION, Table 3.4: Population Density, Guyana: 1980–2002[http://gina.gov.gy/natprofile/gnprof.html Guyana – Government Information Agency], National Profile. gina.gov.gy {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070814020614/http://gina.gov.gy/natprofile/gnprof.html |date=14 August 2007}}

The regions are divided into 27 neighbourhood councils.{{cite web|url=http://www.statisticsguyana.gov.gy/pubs/List_of_NDCs.pdf|title=Government of Guyana, Statistics|access-date=2 May 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091113142144/http://www.statisticsguyana.gov.gy/pubs/List_of_NDCs.pdf|archive-date=13 November 2009|url-status=dead}}

Guyana is divided into four natural regions.{{Citation|last=Brawer|first=Moshe|title=Guyana|date=1991|url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-12579-1_21|work=Atlas of South America|pages=114–119|editor-last=Brawer|editor-first=Moshe|place=London|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan UK|language=en|doi=10.1007/978-1-349-12579-1_21|isbn=978-1-349-12579-1|access-date=2023-02-27|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628023002/https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-349-12579-1_21|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}} These are:

1. Low Coastal Plain
2. Hilly Sand and Clay
3. Highland Region
4. Interior Savannahs

{{See also|Schomburgk Line|Borders of Suriname}}

File:Essequiborivermap.png and (shaded dark) the river's drainage basin. Venezuela claims territory up to the western bank of the river. The historical claim by the UK included the river basin well into current-day Venezuela.]]

Guyana is in border disputes with both Suriname, which claims the area east of the left bank of the Corentyne River and the New River in southwestern Suriname, and Venezuela which claims the land west of the Essequibo River, once the Dutch colony of Essequibo as part of what they call "Guayana Essequiba".{{cite web|title=Guyana ponders judicial action in border dispute with Venezuela|url=http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/politics/2014/12/23/guyana-ponders-judicial-action-in-border-dispute-with-venezuela|work=FoxNews Latino|date=23 December 2014|access-date=22 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150222140437/http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/politics/2014/12/23/guyana-ponders-judicial-action-in-border-dispute-with-venezuela/|archive-date=22 February 2015|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.guyanachronicle.com/ARCHIVES/archive%2017-06-07.html|title=Tribunal decision tentatively set for August|access-date=9 July 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090406062803/http://www.guyanachronicle.com/ARCHIVES/archive%2017-06-07.html|archive-date=6 April 2009}}. guyanachronicle.com, Archives for 17 June 2007{{cite web|url=http://landofsixpeoples.com/news701/nk0702053.html|title=Guyana to experience 'massive' oil exploration this year|publisher=Landofsixpeoples.com|date=5 February 2007|access-date=2 May 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100824175352/http://landofsixpeoples.com/news701/nk0702053.html|archive-date=24 August 2010|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.caribbean360.com/News/Business/Stories/2007/04/27/NEWS0000004303.html|title=News in the Caribbean|publisher=Caribbean360.com|date=27 April 2007|access-date=2 May 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929100725/http://www.caribbean360.com/News/Business/Stories/2007/04/27/NEWS0000004303.html|archive-date=29 September 2007}} The maritime{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20141112212835/http://www.islandjournal.net/reportc.htm?section=caribbeannewsnow&story=Foreign-affairs-minister-reiterates-Guyana%27s-territorial-sovereignty&id=21520&catid=13 Foreign affairs minister reiterates Guyana's territorial sovereignty]}}. CaribbeanNetNews.com (17 February 2010).[https://archive.today/20130410130121/http://www.antiguaobserver.com/?p=24790 POINT OF CLARIFICATION: Guyana clears air on Suriname border talk]. Caribbean News Agency (17 February 2010). component of the territorial dispute with Suriname was arbitrated by the United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea, and a ruling was announced on 21 September 2007. The ruling concerning the Caribbean Sea north of both nations found both parties violated treaty obligations and declined to order any compensation to either party.{{cite web|url=http://www.pca-cpa.org/showpage.asp?pag_id=1147|title=official site of the Permanent Court of Arbitration|publisher=Pca-cpa.org|access-date=2 May 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130208082359/http://www.pca-cpa.org/showpage.asp?pag_id=1147|archive-date=8 February 2013}}

When the British surveyed British Guiana in 1840, they included the entire Cuyuni River basin within the colony, to the protest of Venezuela which claimed all lands west of the Essequibo River. In 1897 in Washington, DC, both countries accepted the "Treaty between Great Britain and the United States of Venezuela Respecting the Settlement of the Boundary between the Colony of British Guiana and the United States of Venezuela." According to the Treaty of Washington (1897), the final decision by the arbitration tribunal in Paris would be a "full, perfect, and final settlement"{{Cite web|url=http://peacemaker.un.org/sites/peacemaker.un.org/files/GB-VE_970202_Treaty%20of%20Arbitration.pdf|title=Treaty of arbitration between Venezuela and Great Britain, signed at Washington and dated the second day of February, 1897|access-date=30 October 2013|archive-date=1 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131101020005/http://peacemaker.un.org/sites/peacemaker.un.org/files/GB-VE_970202_Treaty%20of%20Arbitration.pdf|url-status=live}} to the border dispute. In 1899, the tribunal issued the Paris Arbitral Award, granting a majority of the disputed territory to British Guiana. Following the settlement, an exact border was demarcated by markers and coordinates by a Venezuelan and British boundary commission in accordance with International law. Venezuela brought up again the settled claim, during the 1960s cold war period, and during Guyana's Independence period. In 1962, Venezuelan President Rómulo Betancourt resuscitated Venezuela's claim to the disputed territory by declaring the 1899 arbitration award null and void. The result of this complaint led to the Treaty of Geneva of 1966, which was signed by the Governments of Guyana, the United Kingdom and Venezuela.[http://www.guyana.org/features/trail_diplomacy.html Ishmael, Odeen (1998, rev. 2006) "The Trail Of Diplomacy: A Documentary History of the Guyana-Venezuela Border Issue"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090628103711/http://www.guyana.org/features/trail_diplomacy.html |date=28 June 2009}} Ishmael was Ambassador of Guyana to Venezuela when this was written. Venezuela calls this region "Zona en Reclamación" (Reclamation Zone) and Venezuelan maps of the national territory routinely include it, drawing it in with dashed lines.{{cite web|url=http://www.a-venezuela.com/mapas/map/html/politico.html|title=Mapa Politico de Venezuela|publisher=A-venezuela.com|access-date=2 May 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100220105637/http://www.a-venezuela.com/mapas/map/html/politico.html|archive-date=20 February 2010}}

In 2023, a referendum was held in Venezuela which saw 95% of voters approve creating a new state in the disputed area with Guyana's President Irfaan Ali calling it a direct threat on the nation's sovereignty. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro claims wide support for the move, despite only around 10% of the Venezuelan voting population taking part in the referendum.{{Cite news|date=2023-12-06|title=Essequibo: Venezuela moves to claim Guyana-controlled region|language=en-GB|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-67635646|access-date=2023-12-07|archive-date=7 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231207204335/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-67635646|url-status=live}} Both the US and Brazil made signs of supporting Guyana in the territorial dispute, with Brazil sending troops to their border with the Essequibo region.{{Cite web|last1=Hernández|first1=Osmary|last2=Almánzar|first2=Fernando|last3=Alberti|first3=Mia|date=2023-12-06|title=Venezuela's president orders creation of new state and map including land from Guyana|url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/06/americas/venezuelas-president-orders-creation-of-new-state-and-map-including-land-from-guyana/index.html|access-date=2023-12-07|website=CNN|language=en|archive-date=7 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231207211114/https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/06/americas/venezuelas-president-orders-creation-of-new-state-and-map-including-land-from-guyana/index.html|url-status=live}} US Southern Command held air exercises with Guyana Defence Forces in Guyana in December 2023.From AFP News [https://www.barrons.com/news/us-announces-military-air-exercises-in-guyana-amid-venezuela-tensions-3bca2752 (7 Dec 2023) US Holds Military Exercises In Guyana As Border Tensions Soar] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231207233035/https://www.barrons.com/news/us-announces-military-air-exercises-in-guyana-amid-venezuela-tensions-3bca2752 |date=7 December 2023 }}

File:Special Map of british Guiana, illustrating the Venezuela-Guiana boundary dispute 1895-96 - btv1b8441757p (1 of 2).jpg, including western boundary ceded to Venezuela, published by Scottish cartographer George Philip in 1897]]

Specific small disputed areas involving Guyana are Ankoko Island with Venezuela; Corentyne River{{cite news|url=http://www.islandjournal.net/reportc.htm?section=caribbeannewsnow&story=Guyana-and-Suriname-border-dispute-continues-despite-UN-findings&id=11740&catid=13|title=Guyana and Suriname border dispute continues despite UN findings|access-date=15 December 2008|first=Oscar|last=Ramjeet|date=28 October 2008|work=Caribbean Net News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140228020436/http://www.islandjournal.net/reportc.htm?section=caribbeannewsnow&story=Guyana-and-Suriname-border-dispute-continues-despite-UN-findings&id=11740&catid=13|archive-date=28 February 2014|url-status=usurped}} with Suriname; and Tigri Area or New River Triangle{{cite news|url=http://www.stabroeknews.com/2008/opinion/letters/10/24/there-is-no-agreement-recognizing-suriname%E2%80%99s-sovereignty-over-the-corentyne-river/|title=There is no agreement recognizing Suriname's sovereignty over the Corentyne River|access-date=15 December 2008|first=Carolyn|last=Rodrigues-Birkett|date=24 October 2008|work=Stabroek Newspaper|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130203002333/http://www.stabroeknews.com/2008/opinion/letters/10/24/there-is-no-agreement-recognizing-suriname%E2%80%99s-sovereignty-over-the-corentyne-river/|archive-date=3 February 2013|url-status=live}} with Suriname. In 1967 a Surinamese survey team was found in the New River Triangle and was forcibly removed. In August 1969 a patrol of the Guyana Defence Force found a survey camp and a partially completed airstrip inside the triangle, and documented evidence of the Surinamese intention to occupy the entire disputed area. After an exchange of gunfire, the Surinamese were driven from the triangle.

Guyana entered the Organisation of American States in 1991.{{cite web|url=http://www.oas.org/en/member_states/member_state.asp?sCode=GUY|title=OAS – Organization of American States: Democracy for peace, security, and development|last=OAS|date=1 August 2009|website=oas.org|access-date=3 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161014191244/http://www.oas.org/en/member_states/member_state.asp?sCode=GUY|archive-date=14 October 2016|url-status=live}}

With Guyana having many groups of indigenous persons and given the geographical location of the country, the contributions of the Guyanese to the OAS respecting indigenous people may be significant.{{cite web|url=http://www.oas.org/en/topics/indigenous_peoples.asp|title=OAS – Organization of American States: Democracy for peace, security, and development|last=OAS|date=1 August 2009|website=oas.org|access-date=3 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161222054758/http://www.oas.org/en/topics/indigenous_peoples.asp|archive-date=22 December 2016|url-status=live}}

The position of the OAS respecting indigenous persons developed over the years. "The "OAS has supported and participated in the organisation of Indigenous Leaders Summits of Americas (ILSA)"{{cite web|url=http://www.summit-americas.org/cs_ind.html|title=Indigenous Peoples|website=summit-americas.org|access-date=3 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120413215714/http://www.summit-americas.org/cs_ind.html|archive-date=13 April 2012|url-status=live}}

The Draft American Declaration of the Rights of the Indigenous Persons appears to be a working document{{cite web|url=http://www.oas.org/consejo/CAJP/Indigenous%20special%20session.asp#Special|title=Events OAS Indigenous Special Events|website=oas.org|access-date=3 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170104091030/http://www.oas.org/consejo/CAJP/Indigenous%20special%20session.asp#Special|archive-date=4 January 2017|url-status=live}}

At a CARICOM Meeting, representatives of Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana respectively signed The Double Taxation Relief (CARICOM) Treaty 1994 on 19 August 1994.{{cite web|url=http://www.ird.gov.tt/Media/Default/IRDTreaties/DTT-Caricom--1994.pdf|title=IRD Trinidad and Tobago – CARICOM Treaties|website=ird.gov.tt|access-date=27 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160507154606/http://ird.gov.tt/Media/Default/IRDTreaties/DTT-Caricom--1994.pdf|archive-date=7 May 2016|url-status=live}}

This treaty covered taxes, residence, tax jurisdictions, capital gains, business profits, interest, dividends, royalties and other areas.

On 30 June 2014, Guyana signed a Model 1 agreement with the United States of America in relation to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).{{cite web|url=https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/tax-policy/treaties/Pages/FATCA.aspx|title=Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA)|website=treasury.gov|access-date=16 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170113122755/https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/tax-policy/treaties/Pages/FATCA.aspx|archive-date=13 January 2017|url-status=live}}

This Model 1 agreement includes a reference to the Tax Information Exchange Agreement (Clause 3) which was signed on 22 July 1992 in Georgetown, Guyana intending to exchange tax information on an automatic basis.

{{Main|Transport in Guyana}}

File:LethemBridge.jpg]]

There are a total of {{cvt|116|mi|km|order=flip}} of railway, all dedicated to ore transport. There are {{cvt|4952|mi|km|order=flip}} of highway, of which {{cvt|367|mi|km|order=flip}} are paved. Navigable waterways extend {{cvt|669|mi|km|order=flip}}, including the Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo rivers.

There are ports at Georgetown, Port Kaituma, and New Amsterdam. There are two international airports (Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Timehri and Eugene F. Correia International Airport (formerly Ogle Airport); along with about 90 airstrips, nine of which have paved runways. Guyana, Suriname and the Falkland Islands are the only three regions in South America that drive on the left.

{{Main|Electricity sector in Guyana}}

The electricity sector in Guyana is dominated by Guyana Power and Light (GPL), the state-owned vertically integrated utility. Although the country has a large potential for hydroelectric and bagasse-fuelled power generation, most of its 226 MW of installed capacity correspond to diesel-engine driven generators.{{cite book|publisher=World Bank|date=2007|url=http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2007/10/05/000020439_20071005091246/Rendered/PDF/359511GY0V2.pdf|title=Guyana Investment Climate Assessment, Vol II|pages=71, 73|access-date=18 July 2020|archive-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303181330/http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2007/10/05/000020439_20071005091246/Rendered/PDF/359511GY0V2.pdf|url-status=live}}

Several initiatives are in place to improve energy access in the hinterland.

{{Main|Culture of Guyana}}

{{See also|Literature of Guyana|Music of Guyana}}

Guyana's culture is very similar to that of the English-speaking Caribbean, and has historically been tied to the English-speaking Caribbean as part of the British Empire when it became a possession in the nineteenth century.

The current Guyanese culture began to develop when immigrants (some of them forced, others voluntary) adapted and converged with the dominant British culture. Slavery eradicated much of the distinction between differing African cultures as they were supplanted by British culture, which encouraged the adoption of Christianity and the values of British colonists; this laid the foundations of today's Afro-Guyanese culture. Arriving later and under somewhat more favourable circumstances, Indian immigrants were subjected to less assimilation, and they preserved more aspects of Indian culture, such as religion, cuisine, music, festivals, and clothing.{{Cite web|title=Guyana – Society|url=http://countrystudies.us/guyana/22.htm|access-date=2021-03-04|website=countrystudies.us|archive-date=17 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417170255/http://countrystudies.us/guyana/22.htm|url-status=live}}

Guyana's geographical location, its sparsely populated rain-forest regions, and its substantial Amerindian population differentiate it from English-speaking Caribbean countries. Its blend of the two dominant cultures, Indo-Guyanese and Afro-Guyanese, gives it similarities to Trinidad and Tobago and Suriname, and distinguishes it from other parts of the Americas. Guyana shares similar interests with the islands in the West Indies, such as food, festive events, music, sports, etc.

Events include Mashramani (Mash), Phagwah (Holi), and Deepavali (Diwali).

{{main|National Communications Network, Guyana|Radio in Guyana|List of newspapers in Guyana}}

File:20191121 Guyana 0048 Georgetown sRGB (49295795336).jpg]]

• St George's Anglican Cathedral: A historic Anglican Cathedral made of wood.
• Demerara Harbour Bridge: The world's fourth-longest floating bridge.{{cite web|url=https://ntg.gov.gy/regional-monuments/region-3/|title=Region 3 (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara)|website=National Trust of Guyana|access-date=17 December 2021|archive-date=26 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211126110804/https://ntg.gov.gy/regional-monuments/region-3/|url-status=live}}
• Berbice Bridge: The world's sixth-longest floating bridge.
• Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Building: Houses the headquarters of the largest and most powerful economic union in the Caribbean.
• Providence Stadium: Situated on Providence on the east bank of the Demerara River and built in time for the ICC World Cup 2007, it is the largest sports stadium in the country. It is also near the Providence Mall, forming a major spot for leisure in Guyana.
• Arthur Chung Conference Centre:{{cite web|title=Arthur Chung Conference Centre|website=Ministry of Public Telecommunications {{pipe}} Republic of Guyana|date=6 March 2017|url=https://mopt.gov.gy/agencies/arthur-chung-conference-centre/|access-date=10 December 2019|archive-date=23 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923122222/https://mopt.gov.gy/agencies/arthur-chung-conference-centre/|url-status=live}} Presented as a gift from the People's Republic of China to the Government of Guyana. It is the only one of its kind in the country.
• Stabroek Market: A large cast-iron colonial structure that looked like a statue was located next to the Demerara River.
• Georgetown City Hall: A beautiful wooden structure also from the colonial era.
• Takutu River Bridge: A bridge across the Takutu River, connecting Lethem in Guyana to Bonfim in Brazil.{{Cite web|title=Takutu Bridge to open Friday|work=Kaieteur News|date=29 July 2009|url=https://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2009/07/29/takutu-bridge-to-open-friday/|access-date=18 July 2020|archive-date=26 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126152527/https://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2009/07/29/takutu-bridge-to-open-friday/|url-status=live |author1=Knews }}
• Umana Yana: An Amerindian benab, that is a national monument built in 1972, for a meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Non-Aligned nations (It was rebuilt in 2016).{{cite web|url=https://ntg.gov.gy/national-monuments/|title=National Monuments|website=National Trust of Guyana|access-date=17 December 2021|archive-date=17 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211217090532/https://ntg.gov.gy/national-monuments/|url-status=live}}
• Shell Beach: Approximately 140 km long beach. In some parts beach consists of pure shells, very high biological diversity. Important nesting site for 8 species of sea turtles.{{cite web|url=https://ntg.gov.gy/national-monuments/wonders-of-guyana-2/|title=Wonders of Guyana|website=National Trust of Guyana|access-date=17 December 2021|archive-date=17 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211217090530/https://ntg.gov.gy/national-monuments/wonders-of-guyana-2/|url-status=live}}
• Parliament Building of Guyana: Parliament Building currently houses the seat of the National Assembly of the Government of Guyana. Located in Stabroek, facing Brickdam and bordered by Hadfield Street, High Street, and Cornhill Street {{Cite web|url=https://ntg.gov.gy/monument/parliament-building/|title=Parliament Building – National Trust|access-date=5 February 2023|archive-date=5 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230205183525/https://ntg.gov.gy/monument/parliament-building/|url-status=live}}

{{See also|Cricket in the West Indies}}

File:Providence Stadium outside.jpg

The major sports in Guyana are cricket (Guyana is part of the West Indies cricket team for international cricket purposes{{cite web|title=Composition and countries|url=http://www.windiescricket.com/|work=W.I Cricket team|publisher=West Indies Cricket Board|access-date=27 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140103005917/http://windiescricket.com/|archive-date=3 January 2014|url-status=live}}), basketball, football and volleyball.{{cite web|title=SPORTS, LITERATURE|url=http://www.guyana.org/Handbook/sprtslit.html|publisher=Guyana News and Information|access-date=30 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304111034/http://www.guyana.org/Handbook/sprtslit.html|archive-date=4 March 2016|url-status=live}} Minor sports include softball cricket (beach cricket), field hockey, netball, rounders, lawn tennis, table tennis, boxing, squash, rugby, horse racing and a few others.

Guyana played host to international cricket matches as part of the 2007 Cricket World Cup (CWC 2007). The new 15,000-seat Providence Stadium, also referred to as Guyana National Stadium, was built in time for the World Cup and was ready for the beginning of play on 28 March. At the first international game of CWC 2007 at the stadium, Lasith Malinga of the Sri Lankan team took four wickets in four consecutive deliveries.{{cite news|title=Providence stadium – Records and statistics|url=http://www.cricketworld4u.com/grounds/00042.php|access-date=27 November 2013|newspaper=Cricket World 4U|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202232539/http://www.cricketworld4u.com/grounds/00042.php|archive-date=2 December 2013}}

Guyana's national basketball team has traditionally been one of the top contenders at the CaribeBasket, the top international basketball tournament for countries in the Caribbean.

For international football purposes, Guyana is part of CONCACAF. The highest league in their club system is the GFF Elite League. Guyana's national football team has never qualified for the FIFA World Cup; however, they qualified for the Caribbean Cup in 1991, finishing fourth, and 2007. In 2019, they qualified for the CONCACAF Gold Cup for the first time, after finishing seventh in the qualifiers. They finished third in Group D, having lost two matches and drawn one.

Guyana also has five courses for horse racing.{{cite news|last=Service|first=K News|title=Guyana Horse Racing Authority continues its drive to regularize the sport|url=http://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2013/07/11/guyana-horse-racing-authority-continues-its-drive-to-regularize-the-sport/|access-date=27 November 2013|newspaper=Kaiteur News|date=11 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203002449/http://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2013/07/11/guyana-horse-racing-authority-continues-its-drive-to-regularize-the-sport/|archive-date=3 December 2013|url-status=live}}

{{clear}}

Guyana featured a beach volleyball team at the 2019 South American Beach Games.{{cite news|first1=Royston|last1=Alkins|title=Guyana drops first two matches at SA Beach Volleyball Championships|url=https://www.stabroeknews.com/2019/03/16/sports/guyana-drops-first-two-matches-at-sa-beach-volleyball-championships/|access-date=30 April 2021|work=Stabroek News|date=16 March 2019|archive-date=6 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220706093228/https://www.stabroeknews.com/2019/03/16/sports/guyana-drops-first-two-matches-at-sa-beach-volleyball-championships/|url-status=live}}

{{Portal|Guyana|Caribbean}}

• Index of Guyana-related articles
• Outline of Guyana

{{notelist}}

{{reflist}}

{{refbegin}}

• {{cite book|last=Brock|first=Stanley E.|author-link=Stan Brock (philanthropist)|title=All the Cowboys Were Indians|edition=Commemorative, illustrated (reprint of Jungle Cowboy)|year=1999|publisher=Synergy South, Inc|location=Lenoir City, TN|isbn=978-1-892329-00-4|oclc=51089880|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dtUcPQAACAAJ|access-date=7 January 2010|archive-date=29 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200829183042/https://books.google.com/books?id=dtUcPQAACAAJ|url-status=live}}
• {{cite book|last=Brock|first=Stanley E.|author-link=Stan Brock (philanthropist)|title=Jungle Cowboy|edition=illustrated|year=1972|publisher=Robert Hale Ltd|location=London|isbn=978-0-7091-2972-1|oclc=650259|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=awK7PAAACAAJ|access-date=7 January 2010|archive-date=25 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200825000731/https://books.google.com/books?id=awK7PAAACAAJ|url-status=live}}
• {{Cite book|last=Haack|first=Donald|title=Bush Pilot in Diamond Country|date=2004|publisher=Pure Heart Press|isbn=978-1-930907-49-2|location=Charlotte, N.C}}
• {{Cite book|last=MacInnes|first=Hamish|author-link=Hamish MacInnes|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CAtEDwAAQBAJ|title=Climb to the Lost World|date=1976|publisher=Penguin Books|isbn=978-0-14-003444-8|location=Middlesex}}
• {{Cite book|last=Salkey|first=Andrew|title=Georgetown Journal: A Caribbean Writer's Journey from London Via Port of Spain to Georgetown, Guyana, 1970|date=1972|publisher=New Beacon Books|isbn=978-0-901241-13-9|location=London}}
• {{Cite book|last=Morrison|first=Marion|title=Guyana|date=2003|publisher=Children's Press|isbn=978-0-516-22377-3|series=Enchantment of the world|location=New York}}
• {{Cite book|last=Temple|first=Bob|title=Guyana|date=2016|publisher=Mason Crest|isbn=978-1-4222-3300-9|series=Discovering South America. History, politics, and culture|location=Philadelphia}}
• {{Cite book|last=Bacchus|first=Noël Compton|title=Guyana Farewell: A Recollection of Childhood in a Faraway Place|publisher=N. Bacchus|year=1995|isbn=978-0-962-41921-8|location=New York|lccn=96102460}}
• {{Cite book|last=Colchester|first=Marcus|title=Guyana: Fragile Frontier|date=1997|publisher=Latin American Bureau|isbn=978-0-85345-971-2|location=London}}
• {{Cite book|last=Young|first=Matthew French|title=Guyana, The Lost El Dorado: a Report on My Work and Life Experiences in Guyana, 1925-1980|date=1998|publisher=Peepal Tree Press|isbn=978-1-900715-25-6|location=Leeds, England}}
• {{Cite book|last=Bacon|first=Margaret|title=Journey to Guyana|date=1988|publisher=Hill House|isbn=978-0-9513565-0-0|location=Highworth}}
• {{Cite book|last=Morrison|first=Andrew|title=Justice: The Struggle for Democracy in Guyana, 1952-1992|date=1998|publisher=s.n|isbn=978-976-8157-52-2|location=Guyana}}
• {{cite book|last=Daly|first=Vere T.|title=The Making of Guyana|year=1974|publisher=Macmillan|isbn=978-0-333-14482-4|oclc=1257829|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UOFrAAAAMAAJ|access-date=7 January 2010|archive-date=11 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511112421/http://books.google.com/books?id=UOFrAAAAMAAJ|url-status=live}}
• {{Cite book|last=Burnett|first=D. Graham|author-link=D. Graham Burnett|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CLNJkVbYMP8C|title=Masters of All They Surveyed: Exploration, Geography, and a British El Dorado|date=2000|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0-226-08120-5|location=Chicago}}
• {{Cite book|last=Abrams|first=Ovid|title=Metegee: The History and Culture of Guyana|date=1998|publisher=Ashanti Books|isbn=978-0-966-07074-3|location=Queens Village, NY}}
• {{cite book|last=Waugh|first=Evelyn|author-link=Evelyn Waugh|title=Ninety-two days: The account of a tropical journey through British Guiana and part of Brazil|year=1934|publisher=Farrar & Rinehart|location=New York|oclc=3000330|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ed4YAAAAYAAJ|access-date=7 January 2010|archive-date=11 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511112449/http://books.google.com/books?id=Ed4YAAAAYAAJ|url-status=live}}
• {{Cite book|last1=Durrell|first1=Gerald|title=Three Singles to Adventure|title-link=Three Singles to Adventure|last2=Thompson|first2=Ralph|publisher=Penguin Books|year=1969|isbn=978-0-14-002082-3|location=Harmondsworth|ol=7345923M|orig-date=1954}}
• {{Cite book|last=Jagan|first=Cheddi|title=The West on Trial: My Fight for Guyana's Freedom|publisher=International Publishers|year=1967|location=New York|lccn=67003122}}
• {{Cite book|last1=Jagan|first1=Cheddi|title=My Fight For Guyana's Freedom|last2=Jagan-Brancier|first2=Nadira|last3=Ishmael|first3=M. A. Odeen|last4=Jagan|first4=Cheddi|date=1998|publisher=Harpy|isbn=978-0-9684059-0-1|location=Milton, Ont., Canada}}
• {{Cite book|last=Henfrey|first=Colin|url=https://archive.org/details/throughindianeye00henf|title=Through Indian Eyes: A Journey Among the Indian Tribes of Guiana|publisher=Holt, Rinehart and Winston|year=1965|location=New York|oclc=410666}}
• {{Cite book|last=Rabe|first=Stephen G.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-f30eVom_bkC|title=U.S. Intervention in British Guiana: A Cold War Story|date=2005|publisher=University of North Carolina Press|isbn=978-0-8078-2979-0|series=The new Cold war history|location=Chapil Hill (N. C.)}}
• {{Cite book|last=Waterton|first=Charles|author-link=Charles Waterton|url=https://archive.org/details/wanderingsinso00wate|title=Wanderings in South America|publisher=Cassell & Company|year=1887|location=London|ol=24225529M}}
• {{Cite book|last=Attenborough|first=David|author-link=David Attenborough|url=https://archive.org/details/zooquesttoguiana0000unse|title=Zoo Quest to Guiana|date=1958|publisher=The Reprint Society|location=London|oclc=28039101}}
• {{Cite book|last=Gimlette|first=John|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1l69UM5GoEkC|title=Wild Coast: Travels on South America's Untamed Edge|date=2011|publisher=Profile Books|isbn=978-1-84668-252-0|location=London}}
• {{cite book|last=Clementi|first=Cecil|author-link=Cecil Clementi|title=The Chinese in British Guiana|year=1915|publisher=The Argosy Company Limited|location=Georgetown, British Guiana|url=http://caribbeanpress.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Cecil-Clementi-The-Chinese-In-British-Guiana-Complete-Text.pdf|access-date=27 October 2015|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304084621/http://caribbeanpress.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Cecil-Clementi-The-Chinese-In-British-Guiana-Complete-Text.pdf|url-status=live}}

{{refend}}

{{Sister project links|Guyana|n=Category:Guyana|voy=Guyana|m=no|mw=no|species=no}}

• [https://op.gov.gy/ Office of the President, Republic of Guyana] (official website).
• [http://www.parliament.gov.gy/ Parliament of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana] (official website).
• {{Wikiatlas|Guyana}}
• {{osmrelation-inline|287083}}
• [https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/guyana/ Guyana]. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency.
• [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/country_profiles/1211325.stm Country Profile] from the BBC News.
• [https://www.britannica.com/place/Guyana Guyana] from the Encyclopædia Britannica.
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080607084928/http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/guyana.htm Guyana] at UCB Libraries GovPubs.
• The State of the World's Midwifery, [https://www.unfpa.org/ICPD_GY Guyana Country Profile] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210815212039/https://www.unfpa.org/ICPD_GY |date=15 August 2021}}.
• [http://www.ifs.du.edu/ifs/frm_CountryProfile.aspx?Country=GY Key Development Forecasts for Guyana] from International Futures.

{{Guyana topics}}

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Category:1966 establishments in South America

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Category:The Guianas