Guyana is an investors’ paradise - President Ali tells Caribbean Investment Forum

Guyana is an investors’ paradise – President Ali tells Caribbean Investment Forum

Jul 11, 2024 News

President Irfaan Ali

Kaieteur News – The third installment of the Caribbean Investment Forum (CIF) on Wednesday opened at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, Georgetown with Guyana’s Head of State, President Irfaan Ali charging delegates to take advantage of the plethora of opportunities and incentives offered locally.

In describing the investors’ paradise existing in Guyana, the President told a packed to capacity conference hall that his country is open to investment.

“Guyana is open to investment and has a very friendly investment environment. Guyana offers generous and favourable fiscal investment incentives. Guyana is an open foreign currency market, low inflation and a stable financial system,” the Head of State noted. Further to that, he added, “Investors are permitted to unbridled repatriation of their profits.”

Still focused on convincing investors, Ali pointed out that Guyana recently launched a Single Window Building platform to allow for swift approval of construction permits. He explained, “The system was bureaucratic, it had leakages, it was too subjected to human biases and human interference and we decided that we are going to work on a single window approval system. Two weeks ago we launched the single window approval system that is system based, that is rule based and that holds stakeholders accountable.”

The President was keen to note that if technicians failed to give responses within a specified timeline the project will automatically be deemed approved.

Turning his attention to the investment opportunities that await in Guyana, the President said, “In every single sector, we have outlined for you the investment opportunities that exists here in Guyana…energy, wind, hydro, solar, waste to energy operations, agriculture, forestry, manufacturing, mining, services, tourism, housing.”

The President admitted that there are challenges which must be confronted but strategies are being developed to overcome these.

Also delivering remarks during the opening of the three-day Caribbean Investment Forum were Director of the Caribbean Export Development Agency, Dr. Damie Sinanan, Secretary General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Dr. Carla Barnett, the European Union’s Ambassador to Guyana, Rene van Nes and Head of Private Sector, Caribbean Development Bank, Lisa Harding.

For his part, Dr. Sinanan explained that the conference symbolizes a remarkable shift in the Region’s collective approach to securing the vital investments required for economic development and diversification of the respective countries. He was keen to note, “The Caribbean is ripe for investment opportunities across the various sectors and the forum provides the platform to enable various public and private stakeholders to meet and advance this cause.”

Meanwhile, Dr. Barnette in brief remarks pointed to the need for investment in areas to address the Region’s vulnerabilities, specifically with regard to climate change. “There is also room for investment in technology adoption mechanisms, business information and capacity building platforms, infrastructure development and innovations projects and whether it is agriculture and food and nutrition security, green economy transition or digitalization of business, there is great scope for increasing the participation of women and youth in new investment projects,” she urged.

This year’s three-day Caribbean Investment Forum is being hosted under the theme ‘Transforming Futures, Empowering Growth’. The conference will wind down on Friday following intense sessions on investment opportunities in the Region.

This year’s forum will focus on three investment sectors – sustainable agriculture, green economy transition and digitalisation of businesses.

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