How Suriname and Guyana plan to share oil and gas wealth with citizens
Al Jazeera
Suriname will distribute revenues from new oil and gas discoveries among its more than 600,000 citizens.
The small South American country of Suriname plans to share revenues from newly discovered oil- and gasfields off its coast.
After several discoveries of oil reserves by an offshore drilling project known as Block 58 from 2019 to 2023, President Chan Santokhi has unveiled an ambitious initiative called Royalties for Everyone” (RVI), aimed at ensuring that all Surinamese benefit from the wealth generated for the country, which experts value at about $10bn over the next 10 to 20 years.
“The RVI instrument means that every Surinamese who lives in our country receives a savings note worth US$750 with an annual interest of 7 percent. The money will be paid out in the future from the royalty income of Block 58,” Santokhi said. Oil and gas production is to begin in 2028.
The royalties programme is designed to distribute the anticipated profits from the nation’s natural resources directly to its citizens, marking a significant shift in the country’s economic policy and potentially transforming the lives of the Surinamese people.
So how have the reserves been discovered, and how will the royalties scheme work?
