Bolstered by aggressive investments in modernisation, the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) is on a strategic path to return to profitability by 2030, according to Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha.

Speaking during day two of the 2026 Budget debates, the minister responded to assertions by We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) Parliamentarian Vishnu Panday, the party’s spokesperson on agriculture, who accused the corporation of continued mismanagement.

Panday previously served as an Agriculture Director at GuySuCo.

Minister Mustapha countered those assertions, stating that production at GuySuCo improved following the non-renewal of Panday’s contract in 2024.

“Sugar production, they criticise it but when the honourable member [Panday] was fired in 2024, sugar production increased by 26 per cent,” he pointed out.

He revealed that sugar production increased to more than 59,000 tonnes in 2025, compared to just over 47,100 tonnes in 2024.

According to the Minister, these gains align with GuySuCo’s strategic plan, which he said is focused on restoring efficiency, boosting output, and ensuring long-term sustainability for the sugar industry.

The government has allocated $13.4 billion to GuySuCo, marking a continued financial commitment to restoring the industry’s viability.

Key initiatives for 2026 include the conversion of over 3,000 hectares of land for mechanized harvesting, the procurement of five new cane harvesters, and significant factory upgrades such as the replacement of three sugar boilers and the installation of new dryers at the Rose Hall and Uitvlugt estates.