Latest update May 7th, 2024 12:59 AM
Sep 04, 2016 APNU Column, Features / Columnists
(Excerpt from an address by His Excellency Brigadier David Granger President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, to the 12th Annual Berbice Expo and Trade Fair on August 19, 2016)
Guyana has not had a development plan for more than 25 years. There have been a few ad hoc strategies from time to time. A plan is needed to translate Corentyne’s latent economic potential into economic prosperity. The ‘greening’ of Corentyne’s economy requires a plan geared towards action. It needs a Corentyne Action Plan – CAP – based on its evident comparative advantages.
Stakeholders can work together, urgently, to develop a plan as the basis for the Corentyne’s economic transformation. A CAP, undergirded, by a green agenda, can help to solve the dilemma of a resource-rich, but production-poor Region. It can enjoy sustained economic growth while ensuring greater opportunities for the people.
The Corentyne cannot be developed without change. A Corentyne Action Plan which balances economic transformation and human development will provide greater confidence that steps are being taken to create the conditions that will encourage persons to stay and help to develop this richly endowed Region. A Corentyne Action Plan – CAP – can be based on information, innovation and investment:
· Information is the gateway to increased opportunities. Information is essential for economic transformation. Information about markets, investment trends and opportunities, technological and scientific developments and new business horizons is necessary for entrepreneurs to make informed decisions and to better assess risks.
Business persons must be equipped with appropriate information technology in order to be better integrated into a global market which is becoming increasingly knowledge-intensive. Information technology is a driver of economic growth, particularly for the services sector.
Information technology and information communications technology has the potential to catalyse conditions to create employment.
The liberalization of Guyana’s telecommunication sector will lead to increased investment and job creation. The Government will continue to encourage and incentivize the growth of the information technology and information communication technology sectors because of their potential for job creation.
· Innovation: Innovation is at the heart of increased global competiveness. The introduction, of new services, the creation of new products, the adoption of improved methods and processes, the penetration into new markets and the development of new business models – in agro-processing and eco-tourism for example – must be pursued. Entrepreneurs must innovate, continuously, through research and development, if they are to achieve and retain their competitive advantage.
· Investment: Foreign and domestic investment is essential in sectors such as manufacturing and which have higher job-creating potential than in other sectors. Increased investment in the Corentyne’s rural and hinterland communities where unemployment levels are highest will also yield lucrative returns.
Entrepreneurship will be fostered by access to financial capital, particularly for young entrepreneurs and small, medium and micro-enterprises. Investment is vital to promoting a vibrant entrepreneurial culture. Easier access to credit, including micro-credit will encourage greater investment in the economy and stimulate growth.
THE GREEN ECONOMY
The model of a green economy offers the greatest opportunity for rekindling hope and unlocking the Corentyne’s latent potential. A ‘green agenda’ will not neglect the traditional agricultural sector.
Coastal zone management is a key element of the green economy. It aims to ensure that sea defences and drainage systems are improved to prevent overtopping and flooding. The plan must also counter the threat to the fragile biodiversity of the wetlands – the home of our national bird the Canje Pheasant and much more – and the threat to the forests from logging.
A ‘green’ development trajectory offers the opportunity to restore hope to the Corentyne by diversifying its economic base and by creating economic incentives for young people to remain in the Region. A ‘green’ economy has the potential to:
– generate jobs, stimulate new industries and boost development from the bottom-upwards, thereby reducing underdevelopment and poverty;
– encourage young people to live and work within the Region rather than seeking to migrate to other countries;
– protect farmers’ investments and safeguard the infrastructure which supports agricultural production and markets;
– diversify agricultural production by encouraging the development of new crops and new breeds of livestock, employing new farming techniques and encouraging higher-value organic food production;
– stimulate enterprise at the grassroots level by boosting the economies of villages and communities;
– create a sanitary environment and promote solid waste management, including recycling;
– promote efficient and renewable sources of energy.
The Corentyne has the greatest potential for sustainable energy development in Guyana because it has a range renewable energy sources. The Corentyne is a pioneer in bio-mass energy. It is already generating energy from bagasse. The production of ethanol as fuel can follow.
The Corentyne’s 85-kilometre long coastline is a potentially productive source for wind energy, its vast intermediate savannahs can be the sites for solar energy farms, and its rivers can be the sites for the development of micro-hydroelectric plants.
CORENTYNE VISION
I have a vision for a prosperous region, propelled by information technology, investment and innovativeness. I see more. I have a vision for an agriculture institute, botanical garden, zoological park, cricket stadium, radio station and an international airport. I see the exploitation of the tourism potential by the declaration of a ‘protected area’ for the wetlands of the Canje basin.
The Central Corentyne Chamber of Commerce by its organization of this annual Berbice Expo and Trade Fair 2016 has demonstrated that it does have the expertise to exercise leadership.
I challenge the Chamber to take the lead in bringing together the Corentyne’s stakeholders to produce a Corentyne Action Plan. The government will support such an initiative which is necessary so that the sleeping economic giant, known as East Corentyne-Berbice, can awaken from its slumber.
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