Guyana’s 2025–2030 transformation already unfolding, major bridges, roads, ports underway -Minister Edghill

Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill says Guyana’s next five years of development are already in motion, not just “in the pipeline”, as he outlined major national projects on The Starting Point podcast with Kiana Wilburg and Fareeza Haniff. He confirmed that the new Berbice River bridge, similar to the Demerara crossing, has gone out to tender, a preferred bidder is already identified, and the contract should be signed before year-end. That bridge will anchor the wider Palmyra development, including housing, a stadium, a deep-water harbour, a municipal airport, a gas pipeline and even a cultural market.Edghill added that the road from Palmyra to Moleson Creek is being expanded to four lanes, linking to the planned Corentyne River bridge under a government-to-government arrangement with Suriname. In Essequibo, hundreds of contracts have already been executed, but the big focus now is turning the Supenaam–Charity road into a four-lane highway and building a new wharf at Charity to support both Pomeroon traffic and travellers coming from Region One.He confirmed two new ferries, one for the Parika–Supenaam route and another for Georgetown-Mabaruma, alongside major work on the new international port at Parika, which will include a marina, roll-on/roll-off ferry facilities, and offices for customs, immigration and CANU. The full buildout will be completed before 2030, with the first contracts already active. Work is also ongoing to link the Essequibo islands using components from the old Demerara Harbour Bridge, allowing drivers to reach Bartica in about two hours instead of waiting on long boat rides.Edghill said Guyana is being positioned as a regional hub, with road and bridge networks connecting the Caribbean to South America, including access to a 20-million-person market in northern Brazil. Tourism is also a priority, with plans to improve all hinterland airstrips and build proper waiting areas and washroom facilities. On the West Demerara, the Wales Development Authority is moving ahead, along with new infrastructure like the Stanleytown bridge and the four-lane Schoonord-Parika highway, opening new areas for housing.He stressed that the transformation is already underway: “We have gone past the pipeline… things are happening. It might not be obvious to everybody… but when the connections are made, it’s going to be the wow factor.”