Guyana Boasts of Fastest Growing Economy In The World at FITCE
Guyana Boasts of Fastest Growing Economy In The World
By Shrie Mears
FT. LAUDERDALE – On Wednesday, October 4th, Caribbean nations presented to an international audience at the Florida International Trade Conference and Expo (FITCE) the attributes of investing and doing business in the various countries highlighting extensive menus of attractive business opportunities and incentives.
Spread over three panels, the more than 200 attending the session on ‘Doing Business with the Caribbean’ heard from Government Ministers from Saint Lucia and Belize, Mayors from the Dominican Republic and Martinique, diplomats from Jamaica and Barbados and business executives from Guyana and the US Virgin Islands.
Guyana’s GDP Growth
While most of the nations focused on their tourism and hospitality product, Guyana boasted of its status as the current fastest growing economy in the world with GDP growth of 62.3 per cent last year and projected growth of 38 per cent in 2023.
“While much of this growth is the result of our nascent oil and gas industry, there is also growth in non-oil sectors such as agriculture and agribusiness, energy, tourism, and infrastructure development all of which offer tremendous trade and investment opportunities. Already the country is attracting significant international interest and investment and I invite you to explore these mutually beneficial opportunities,” Executive Director of the World Trade Center Georgetown (WTCG), Wesley Kirton told the audience.
Word Trade Center in Guyana
Kirton also highlighted that Guyana has the first World Trade Center in the CARICOM region, an initiative that was birthed in 2019 at FITCE and which saw the attainment of the license by Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) early last year. He disclosed that the WTC building in the capital city of Georgetown, is scheduled to be officially open during the first quarter of 2024.
“WTCG is not merely about real estate but more so about programs and projects that are designed to strengthen trade and investment relations between Guyana and the rest of the world particularly aimed at helping small and medium size enterprises better understand processes and procedures which would help facilitate market access, especially new markets through the network of world trade centers, globally,” the Guyanese business executive said.
He pointed to evidence of the usefulness of the world trade centers’ network encouraging efforts to expand the market for Guyana’s award -winning Eldorado rum in Latin America and Africa and invited interested companies to discuss with Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) possible distributorship arrangements for these two regions of the world.
Guyana’s Stability
In an interview after his presentation, Kirton was asked about the stability of the Guyanese society based on reports of threats by Venezuela which claims much of Guyana’s landmass and maritime space. He was also questioned about allegations levelled by the political opposition of widespread discrimination and corruption in Guyana.
Kirton responded by indicating that “the Venezuela claim and its recent and previous threats and actions have all been continuously condemned by the international community. The matter, as facilitated through the Geneva Agreement, is now before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and Guyana will respect its ruling when it is made. We hope Venezuela will do the same. In the meantime, Guyana is proceeding with its development agenda and remain a stable society.
“Widespread discrimination in my view is an exaggeration but as a journalist myself I think media operatives should visit Guyana and seek to honestly determine whether the evidence exists in support of claims of widespread discrimination and apartheid. As for corruption, I wouldn’t say that there isn’t corruption but again there has to be irrefutable evidence of this and where such evidence is unearthed it must be exposed and those involved dealt with accordingly. There is in the US the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act which provides for prosecution of persons found to engage in kickbacks, money laundering and other criminal activity”.
