Fishermen

The Daily Brief — Monday, April 6, 2026

Your 5-minute guide to what’s happening in Guyana — plain talk, no spin.

SURINAME CHARGES BY THE RIVERFULL

The Suriname river fee saga continues to produce strong language and diplomatic protest letters that Paramaribo appears to be filing directly in the bin. Guyanese vessel operators in the Upper Corentyne are now facing “pilot licence” fees of up to US$2,500 per trip, plus broker charges of US$1,000 to US$1,500, which is an impressive number for a river that Guyana has legal navigation rights on under customary international law. The Berbice Chamber and the GCCI have both called for the government to freeze the Corentyne Bridge project until Suriname gets its act together, which is roughly equivalent to refusing to build a fence with your neighbour until they stop letting their cow into your yard. President Ali lodged a formal protest. Suriname has not responded. The word “reciprocity” has now been invoked by every arm of Guyanese government except the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority, and give them time.