Leader of the We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) party, Azruddin Mohamed, has pledged to build an aluminium plant and a glass factory in Linden, Guyana, as part of his campaign to revive Region 10’s struggling economy. Speaking at a well-attended rally on Wednesday night, he declared, “This region needs jobs. Young people need opportunities, and rest assured, we want to set up an aluminium plant here.”
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The initiatives intend to utilise the area’s natural resources, bauxite and silica sand, in value-added industries, providing jobs and assisting in keeping the wealth generated in the area local.
Tackling historical neglect
Linden boasts huge quantities of bauxite reserves, a primary ore for aluminium, which is again a strategic commodity for Guyana. However, Linden has faced decades of economic neglect, not least of all by sequential People’s Progressive Party (PPP) governments. The infrastructure has deteriorated, high unemployment continues to be a problem, and the losses to the bauxite industry in the 1980s left over 1,500 bauxite workers unemployed. To make matters worse, the bauxite workers’ USD 2.5 billion pension plan was terminated, which festered economic suffering on retirees.
Against this backdrop, Mohamed told residents, “All the bauxite is going out of the country, but we’re going to ensure the bauxite is going out to make the same aluminium products.” He also added that Guyanese would become shareholders in such ventures, ensuring local ownership.
Glass factory and wider development agenda
Mohamed also announced plans for a glass factory that would use Guyana’s silica sand currently exported to the Dominican Republic, saying, “More money will be circulating in Region 10. It’s all about empowering the people.”
In addition to industry, his campaign promises to have a University of Guyana campus in Linden, a development bank for small businesses, and an improved Linden Hospital Complex. He would also increase the Christmas cash grant and redistribute lands for houses.
Positioning Linden on the global stage
If all goes well, Linden can re-establish itself in the aluminium value chain to benefit from an anticipated upturn in global demand for green energy solutions and value-added production. Given the dominant bauxite resources, a shift to domestic glass and aluminium refining could attract foreign investment and technology, while reducing reliance on raw export.
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