00:00Suriname, South America's smallest country, is preparing for an influx of wealth spurred by planned exploitation of newly discovered offshore crude deposits.
00:11Beginning in 2028, French group Total Energy plans to extract as much as 220,000 barrels of crude oil per day,
00:19with Suriname poised to rake in about $10 billion in the next decade or two.
00:24The change in fortunes comes as Suriname battles high debt, rampant inflation, and poverty affecting nearly one in five of its 600,000 inhabitants.
00:35The country has created a sovereign wealth fund similar to Norway's in order to put money aside for tough times.
00:43When you don't have money as a country, when you're bankrupted, you can have nice ideas, good plans, good programs, but you cannot implement it.
00:50We are now able and we do have the capacity to do more for our people so that everyone can be part of the growth of my nation.
01:00President Chan Sentoki announced this week that royalties from fossil fuel extraction will also be distributed among the populace,
01:08with each Suriname citizen receiving $750 U.S. dollars in a cash grant.
01:14The elderly and disabled are already receiving payouts.
01:19The majority of the population will have to wait until the oil is sold, however, which is still years away.
01:26Sentoki's announcement came just days before Sunday's tight parliamentary elections, in which no party has a clear lead.
01:33The new parliament will in turn choose the next president, and Sentoki is seeking a second term.
01:39During his five years as president, Sentoki has come under fire for austerity measures and tax hikes,
01:46implemented as part of restructuring required by the International Monetary Fund.
