Guyana’s Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh says that the country is in a hurry to develop its resources and told visiting US business owners and officials that the country is seeking support from international partners.
The Senior Minister said this as he addressed a roundtable engagement between Guyanese and American businesses hosted on Thursday at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre at Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown.
According to him, Guyana is experiencing its most transformative and exciting period of development with the rapid expansion of the economy.
This is in keeping with global reports. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in October projected that Guyana’s 57.8 per cent growth rate was the highest in the Latin America and Caribbean region.
Over the past two years, even in face of the COVID-19 pandemic, Guyana has been recording substantial growth figures. This is largely attributed to the nascent oil and gas sector.
But the country’s rapid economic expansion, Dr. Singh said, should translate to positive developments for Guyanese.
With the government keenly focused on doing just that, he contended that external support is crucial.
“We’re in a hurry to deliver development to the people of Guyana and we see important partners like the EXIM Bank playing a strategic role,” Dr. Singh said.
He later added: “We would like to see more US companies in Guyana, playing a part in that transition.”
Almost immediately, US officials and visiting representatives from the US EXIM Bank responded to his statements.
Acting Senior Vice President, Office of Small Business at the US EXIM Bank Tamara Maxwell illustrated just how keen the US is on facilitating increased business relations with Guyana.
Maxwell also spent much time outlining the services offered by the EXIM Bank and how it can be a key facilitator for US companies seeking to partner with Guyanese companies.
But the Bank will soon offer special services, specific to the Guyanese market.
“We have decided to create a team that is only going to handle Guyana authorisations and applications so that you are not waiting on anybody to call back… (and) so that transactions coming from Guyana are not missed,” she told the gathering of business people.
Meanwhile, US Ambassador to Guyana Sarah- Ann Lynch reminded the gathering that the US is Guyana’s largest trading partner. And she pitched US companies as good partners for Guyanese, noting that the largest ever US trade delegation is currently visiting the South American nation.
She, however, urged both sets of stakeholders to approach these partnerships with much alacrity.
“As Guyana’s largest trading partners, US companies want to make deals. As one of the fastest growing economies in the world, the Guyanese want to make deals,” Lynch said.
