GUYEXPO opens with unprecedented overseas participation
I want all investors to know that if you obey the law and practice good corporate governance, my government will not stand in your way. Your investments will be protected by law and not subject to the whim of politicians, and you will be supported by economic policies that are unambiguously pro-business, pro-profit and pro-growth
“We also need to see a mind-set shift across our entire public service, where a customer-service mentality takes hold and facilitates both transparency and effectiveness in the support of business,”
By Neil Marks
PRESIDENT Bharrat Jagdeo pledged to cut red tape in state agencies, push greater implementation of investment laws and place more emphasis on investment promotion, when he opened Guyexpo 2007 last evening, making the case for foreign direct investment and expansion of local businesses.

Barbados’ Deputy Prime Minister Mia Motley, who shared the stage with Mr. Jagdeo, was emphatic that Guyana is the place to invest, noting this country’s production capacity outweighs all other countries within the regional integration bloc, CARICOM. This could buttress her island’s dependence on the services sector, adding that her 40-member strong delegation was here to pursue business, “joint ventures”.

The President in assuring investors that Guyana is a place to invest declared: “I want all investors to know that if you obey the law and practice good corporate governance, my government will not stand in your way. Your investments will be protected by law and not subject to the whim of politicians, and you will be supported by economic policies that are unambiguously pro-business, pro-profit and pro-growth,”

His audience included the unprecedented overseas interest in Guyexpo this year, with participants from Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, India, Pakistan, Brazil, the U.S.A., Canada, Grenada, and Indonesia.

Over 250 exhibitors are taking part in the trade and investment exhibition at the National Exhibition Complex, Sophia, Georgetown.

Mr. Jagdeo took note of the areas where the government is lacking, pointing to the need for “an aggressive focus on efficiency that seeks to remove red tape and improve the ease of doing business.”

“We also need to see a mind-set shift across our entire public service, where a customer-service mentality takes hold and facilitates both transparency and effectiveness in the support of business,” Mr. Jagdeo added.

The President pointed to “vast” opportunities for investment, whether in traditional sectors such as mining, sugar, rice and timber, non-traditional sectors such as aquaculture, agro-processing, fresh fruits and value-added forestry products, or service exports such as construction, tourism, design and ICT-enabled services.

He plugged the case that Guyana’s location is the gateway between the Caribbean and Brazil, and access to the CARICOM market-place will open up vast new markets for those doing business in Guyana.

He buttressed his case in noting that the bridge across the Takutu River, which borders Guyana and Brazil, will be completed within a year, and the bridge across the Berbice River will be almost complete in the same period.

Mr. Jagdeo noted that in a year’s time the government expects to ink a contract to begin work on the hydro-electricity plant at Amelia Falls, leading to cheaper electricity and greater energy security for Guyana.

“These changes in the physical landscape of our country are vivid indicators of the pace of change being experienced by our entire society, and the gathering momentum behind increased economic potential which is there to be realised,” the President noted.Partnering
Mr. Jagdeo said in increasing the climate for investment and local business expansion, he wants the private sector to work with his government to remove the negative perceptions outside about Guyana’s business climate.
“An inaccurate image of the business climate within our country, - whether in international competitiveness indices, media coverage or financial ratings - has real bottom-line impact on our private sector’s ability to expand,” the President posited.
Touching on their own need to step up competitiveness, the President said the private sector must become more vocal in demanding competitive offerings from Guyana’s banks and other financial institutions. He noted that despite historic levels of liquidity, “we have businesses all over the country which cannot access the finance they need to expand and create value.”

He said it is not the government that will realise economic opportunities, but rather a private sector that can meet the challenges and manage the pace of change that the modern world presents.

He added that as Guyana continues to emerge as an attractive location for investment, this will see a transformation in the nature of Guyana’s private sector. Mr. Jagdeo said increased competition from overseas will mean that companies need to be agile in the face of market forces or they will go out of business.

He observed that traditional markets in the region, North America and Europe will be augmented by new markets, most prominently in India, China and Brazil and this presents unprecedented opportunity, “but it will also mean that business in Guyana will become ever more competitive.”

Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce Mr. Manniram Prashad said Guyexpo is geared towards promoting local products and services and to generate new business ventures. He said Guyexpo, which started in 1995, has now fully self-financed.

Mr. Prashad said he was favourable to private sector led development and therefore called on businesses to adopt new practices to become more competitive on the local and overseas markets.

Acting Chairman of the Private Sector Commission Colonel (ret.) Carl Morgan said Guyexpo is the most important domestic marketing opportunity for local business and the collaboration with the government in staging the exhibition was testimony to the important role the partnership between the government and private sector plays in building the local economy.

Guyexpo runs until October 2.