Guyana - bracing for the oil boom

The Documentary Podcast

BBC

Society & Culture, Documentary, Personal Journals

4.3 • 2.6K Ratings

🗓️ 8 May 2019

⏱️ 27 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

South America’s second poorest nation is about to get very rich - but will the prosperity be shared? A series of oil discoveries in Guyanese waters has revealed almost unimaginable riches beneath the seabed; enough oil to catapult Guyana to the top of the continent’s rich list. Next year, the oil - and cash - is due to start flowing. The major new industry could help solve two of Guyana’s big problems: high youth unemployment and the emigration of most of its graduates. But as young Guyanese prepare for a future in oil and dream of lives transformed, some fear the so-called oil curse will see a corrupt elite squander and steal the country’s newfound wealth. Presenter/producer: Simon Maybin (Photo: Kiwana Baker, right, hopes that a career in oil will give her opportunities that her mother, Marslyn Pollard, left, never had. Credit: BBC)

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	BBC sounds, music, radio, podcasts.
0:10.1	If you sit on Guyana's seawall, staring out at the Atlantic Ocean, the only thing that
0:14.9	might distract you from a daydream is the electric red of a scarlet ibis, sailing silently
0:20.4	in the distance across the sky's blue.
0:23.9	Little would you know, just looking at these waters, lapping the northern coast of South
0:27.7	America, that what lies beneath them is set to upend everything here, because they found
0:34.0	oil and lots of it.
0:36.0	Enough, some say, to catapult Guyana from being one of the continent's poorest countries
0:40.8	to one of the richest.
0:43.8	As soon as the discovery was made, of course, news, as much as I thought it was kind of fake
0:51.9	news, it was just unbelievable.
0:57.2	Money is already starting to pour in, so what you're holding in your hands is worth
1:01.2	$10 million.
1:03.2	But there's skepticism about how far the money will be spread around.
1:08.1	I mean, you're hearing about what happened in Guinea, what happened in Nigeria, Venezuela's
1:12.8	next door.
1:13.8	You know, people are very, very sensitive and not too sure.
1:19.4	I'm Simon Maibin.
1:20.8	For this edition of Assignment on the BBC World Service, I'm in Guyana to see how this
1:25.2	small country is getting ready for big money.
1:32.2	The breeze here is so good.
1:36.8	It's a nice breeze.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.