By Richard Bhainie
Local manufacturing company Fibre Tech Industrial Plastics located at Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara is the first business to be certified with the ‘Made in Guyana’ certification mark.
The registered mark was launched in October 2021 and aims to promote recognition of locally manufactured products on local and international markets.
For context, Chinese products are easily identified with the ‘Made in China’ seal; similarly, the ‘Made in Guyana’ mark aims to make easily identifiable, authentic Guyanese products.
It is issued by the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) and is used to certify authentic Guyanese products based on the quantity of local raw materials and Guyanese labour used in the production process, among other criteria.
Sixty per cent of raw materials used in the manufacturing process must be from Guyana and 70 per cent of the workforce at the establishment must be Guyanese among other factors before a business can qualify for the mark.
“The Made in Guyana mark will assure a purchaser that he or she is buying a product that has been produced substantively or exclusively in Guyana,” Minister of Tourism Industry and Commerce Oneidge Walrond said at a simple ceremony on Tuesday at Fibre Tech Industrial Plastics.
“Consumers can be assured that when they buy Made in Guyana products that they are supporting Guyanese industry and ultimately contributing in a tangible and significant manner to Guyanese development,” Walrond said.
She explained that the government wishes for the mark to be synonymous with quality and urged manufacturers to pursue quality certifications simultaneously with the Made in Guyana certification.
The mark will eventually contribute to international competitiveness for authentic Guyanese products and provide the framework for the development of quality systems within local companies, Walrond noted.
Fibre Tech Industrial Plastics has been operating in Guyana for over 25 years and has supported many industries with their array of products ranging from equipment for schools, bathroom products, household items, laboratories and recreational products.
The company, which adheres to Canadian standards in their manufacturing process, has long called for a certification mark and has worked closely with GNBS to make the Made in Guyana Mark a reality, Managing Director of Fibre Tech Industrial Plastics, Somat Ali said.
Ali commended GNBS for launching the certification mark which he thinks is necessary to generate confidence in authentic Guyanese products on the international market.
However, he believes that imported products should also be held to high standards and called on policymakers to implement mechanisms that will see imported products vetted before being consumed locally.
Offering brief remarks, First Vice-President of the Guyana Manufacturing & Services Association (GMSA) Ramsay Ali pledged the association’s support to get its members on board with the initiative.
The Made in Guyana Certification is valid for one year and will be monitored through surveillance visits by the GNBS to ensure the approved quality is maintained.
Persons who wish to apply for the voluntary Made in Guyana programme can contact the GNBS Certification Services Department on 219-0064-66 or email them at certification@gnbsgy.org.
