Demerara Bank signs loan agreement with St. Vincent & the Grenadines for 50 prefab homes

Jan 25, 2023 News

Kaieteur News – Demerara Bank Limited executed on January 20, 2023, signed a loan agreement with the Government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to finance the purchase of 50 prefabricated timber houses from a supplier in Guyana.

The agreement was signed in Saint Vincent & the Grenadines by General Manager of the Bank, Dowlat Parbhu and Prime Minister, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves. DBL said this collaboration will see the creation of an important model that will foster an environment for increased regional trade between Guyana and the Caribbean.

The prefabricated houses, built by Duravilla Homes, a local company in Guyana, consist of one, two and three-bedroom models, and are engineered to withstand up to category four hurricanes. The houses are expected to be delivered in March 2023 and will greatly aid efforts by the Vincentian government to rebuild and repair communities that were devastated by the eruption of the La Soufrière volcano in 2021.

Dowlat Parbhu of Demerara Bank and Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves holding signed copies of the loan agreement.  

The Prime Minister mentioned at the signing that almost 20 percent of the population was displaced by the eruption and that the government is purchasing these homes to replace, free of cost, those houses that were damaged. He further stated that to his knowledge, this is the first time that the government will be accessing financing from a local indigenous bank in Guyana and thanked the Board and Management of Demerara Bank Ltd. for their support.

Parbhu related that the Bank is deeply honoured to partner with the government of St.  Vincent and the Grenadines in its recovery efforts. He said that the facility, which was granted over seven years, is one of many opportunities that the Bank will explore to foster and enhance trade & investment within the region.

Demerara Bank opened its doors to the public in 1994 and has served as a catalyst for growth in Guyana’s economy. It continues to focus its strategies on providing a differentiated customer experience and leverages on sustainable long-term relationships to support major developing sectors in Guyana.

The Bank recently announced that a $900 million revolving fund was established with the Government of Guyana to support the forestry sector, and shortly before inked an Agreement with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) through their Trade Finance Facilitation Programme (TFFP) for a US$7 million Line of Credit Facility to support short-term international trade financing requirements.

• 50 prefabricated timber houses, Demerara Bank, Dowlat Parbhu, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, La Soufrière volcano