When the British grabbed Guyana in 1803 all basic infrastructure was already in place --- roads, canals, dams, kokers, seawalls etc. The British got a readymade land, sort of.
But about 200 years before that, when the Dutch arrived the entire landscape was bush, swamp and some native benabs. At that time ships used to avoid landing at the Wild Coast, as the land was called.
Picture this, a few hundred Dutchmen decided to settle, to build something out of sheer bush and swamp. They had to use unpaid labour because slavery was the mode of production in the western hemisphere at that time. The Dutchmen and their African slaves manually cut down bush, dug canals, set up a sound drainage & irrigation system, introduced horses and various livestock and systems of agro industry for sugar production. In short, it was an epoch of creativity and optimism. By the mid-1700s Dutch Governor Gravesande even started inviting Englishmen from Barbados to settle in Demerara-Essequibo.
For me creativity in whatever form is a wonderful thing. By the 18th century that former wild coast of bush and swamp was attracting major world powers like Britain and France. Guyana had become something of value.
True, slavery is abominable. But like other things, slavery dialectically produces its opposite --- freedom through revolt. Guyana's history-making revolt occurred in 1763. And 200 years after that Cuffy became independent Guyana's national hero. Rightly so.
I think our golden age was the 18th century. The British reviled and belittled the Dutch contribution to Guyana's development. Dem badminded rass. 