Paramaribo

Waterkant, 18 May 2026: rents in Suriname have risen alarmingly in recent years, and many landlords demand rent in US dollars or euros, which most people cannot afford on SRD wages; people rent beyond their budget or several families share one house; many apartments are being built in neighbourhoods, popular with foreigners (Cubans, Brazilians, Venezuelans). Waterkant, 30 June 2026: MP Genevievre Jordan (ABOP) said during the budget debate that citizens pay hundreds of euros a month in rent and some spend almost their whole salary, and proposed an independent rent authority with the power to set maximum rents and a housing allowance; with the arrival of the oil and gas sector, she said, pressure on the market will grow. We did not find listing platforms with open prices for Paramaribo, so there is no rent figure.

SWM (Suriname water company): new tariffs were introduced from July 2023 based on a basic rate of 41.81 SRD per cubic metre, equal to the cost price; for the household groups 20, 30A (up to 16 m³) and 30B (16 m³ and more) the tariff was raised monthly to the final level of 41.81 SRD in January 2026; for a house with a swimming pool it is 50.17. The bill is the cubic metres at the group tariff plus meter rent; in the SWM example for group 30A the meter rent is 40 SRD and VAT of 5% is charged on the whole amount, the minimum payment is 50 SRD. Example from the tariff (our arithmetic, not an SWM bill): 15 m³ × 41.81 + 40 = 667.15 SRD, with 5% VAT 700.51 SRD, about 18.5 dollars at the central bank rate of 37.85. Households not connected to the network usually rely on rainwater.

EBS tariffs, in force from the consumption month of December 2024 and published on the site as current on 6 October 2026. Residential consumers, rate per kWh by block: 0-400 kWh 1.971 SRD, 401-900 2.850, 901-1500 3.330, above 1500 4.680. Basic monthly charge: single phase 211.78 SRD, two-phase 293.97, three-phase 349.13; the minimum bill equals the basic charge. The PDF version of the table has a "Subsidy" row by consumption block: 0-150 kWh 85, 151-300 150, 301-450 225, 451-500 300, 501-900 400 SRD; the document does not explain how it is deducted from the bill. Example from the tariff (our arithmetic, not an EBS bill): 300 kWh × 1.971 + 211.78 = 803.08 SRD, about 21 dollars at the central bank rate of 37.85; if the 150 SRD subsidy is deducted, it is about 653 SRD (17 dollars). Taxes are not mentioned in the table. The tariff is more than a year old, so confidence is low.

EBS "Refill tariffs" page: the official gas prices set by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Entrepreneurship and Technological Innovation; in Paramaribo a 20 lb cylinder refill (about 9 kg, our conversion) costs 35.75 SRD, 28 lb 48.50 SRD, 100 lb 186.00 SRD; in the districts slightly more, up to 38.75 / 51.75 / 200 SRD in Albina. The page does not show the date of the prices. At the central bank rate of 37.85 per dollar a 20 lb cylinder costs less than a dollar, which is suspiciously cheap; perhaps the prices are outdated or subsidised, and they should be rechecked before budgeting. The page does not say whether there is piped gas in the city.

UK Foreign Office (updated 10 December 2025): there are burglaries, armed robberies and violent crime in the capital and its surroundings; criminals may target quiet or secluded areas, including the Palm Garden (Palmentuin) and other parts of Paramaribo; pickpocketing and robbery are increasingly common in the main business and shopping areas; avoid wearing expensive jewellery and showing cash. We did not find crime statistics by city district.

Airport website: Johan Adolf Pengel International (PBM), also known as Paramaribo-Zanderij, is in the town of Zanderij 45 km south of Paramaribo and is the country's main international gateway. Destinations listed on the site: Caribbean Airlines, Port of Spain and Georgetown (Ogle); Copa, Panama; Fly Allways, Cuba and Georgetown; Gol, Belém; KLM, Amsterdam; Surinam Airways (SLM), Amsterdam, Aruba, Belém, Barbados, Curaçao, Georgetown and Miami. The page does not show when the list was updated; schedules should be checked with the airlines. UK Foreign Office: some drivers have poor road sense and roads are poorly lit in places; use licensed taxis or those booked by a hotel, do not hail them in the street.

WMO normals (period not given, a rainy day is one with at least 3 mm): January 159.6 mm, February 168.2, March 152.3, April 206.2, May 328.2, June 274.5, July 225.2, August 149.7, September 94.6, October 76.1, November 134.2, December 178.9. The total is 2147.7 mm, our arithmetic. UK Foreign Office: the north and centre of the country are prone to flooding in the rainy season from May to August.

Climate normals for Paramaribo in the WMO handbook: January, average minimum 21.6, average maximum 31.8 degrees; February 21.6 and 31.3. Average minima over the year are 21.6-22.9, maxima 31.3-35.1; the hottest months are September (34.7), October (35.1) and November (34.3). The averaging period and the station are not given in the handbook; by the coordinates on the page this is Paramaribo (5.85° N, 55.21° W). Autumn maxima above 34 degrees seem high for a coastal city; perhaps the data come from a station inland.

Speedtest Global Index (Ookla) for August 2026, rolling three months: the median fixed broadband speed in Suriname is 182.66 Mbit/s download and 148.96 upload, latency 4 ms, 42nd in the world; the mean is 235.02. Mobile internet: median 64.47 Mbit/s. These are national figures; there are none for Paramaribo separately. Telesur, by its own account the largest provider in the country: Basic 400/400 Mbit/s for 1124.96 SRD excluding VAT with a 2-year contract, Streaming 1/1 Gbit/s for 1899.95 SRD excluding VAT. The payment period is not labelled next to the price; that it is monthly follows from the add-on Fiber Care on the same page costing 200 SRD a month. The conversion of 1124.96 SRD at the central bank rate of 37.85 (about 30 dollars) is ours.