(Kaieteur News) – Guyana is set to remain the fastest-growing economy in Latin America and the Caribbean, with real GDP projected to expand by 23.7 per cent in 2026, according to the World Bank’s latest Latin America and the Caribbean Economic Update.
The World Bank’s October 2026 report places Guyana’s projected growth well ahead of every other country in the region, reflecting the continuing impact of the country’s oil-driven economic expansion.
The report projects Guyana’s economy to grow by 18.7 per cent in 2027 and another 15.3 per cent in 2028, following growth of 19.3 per cent in 2025. Guyana recorded growth of 43.8 per cent in 2024 and 33.8 per cent in 2023. The World Bank specifically identifies Guyana and Suriname as exceptions to the more tempered economic recovery occurring elsewhere in the Caribbean, describing their performance as being driven by oil expansions. Tourism-dependent Caribbean economies, by contrast, continue to face high energy and transportation costs.
The report’s projections show the scale of Guyana’s economic outperformance. While the wider Latin American and Caribbean region is expected to grow by only 2.2 per cent in 2026, Guyana’s projected expansion is more than ten times the regional rate. Regional growth was 2.4 per cent in 2025. LAC REU – Executive Summary Oct 2026.
However, the World Bank cautions that the region’s headline growth figures mask significant differences among countries. It argues that stronger economic performance is possible where governments pursue sound and durable policies capable of encouraging investment and strengthening market confidence.
The report also highlights artificial intelligence as a potential new engine of productivity across the region. It warns, however, that access to AI technology alone will not automatically translate into higher productivity. According to the World Bank, the major constraint is “absorptive capacity”—the ability of governments, businesses and workers to effectively adopt and use new technologies. This requires stronger human capital, digital infrastructure, usable data and better management practices.
Source: Kaieteur News
