GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Investment opportunities in Guyana will be boosted with the opening of the World Trade Centre Georgetown (WTCG). This is according to Komal Samaroo, Chairman of Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL).
“Once this building is commissioned and the WTCG gets fully operational, we are going to be actively involved in bringing opportunities and businesses in Guyana, particularly the small, medium, and micro business opportunities,” he said at the official opening of the WTCG headquarters located on 44 High Street, Kingston next to the Guyana Elections Commission.
He stated that WTCG had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with several sister WTC organizations, including those in Panama, the United States, and India, for collaboration in areas such as information exchange on regulation and market access, Mandarin training, and the exchange of trade and investment missions. He said that through the MoU with WTC Miami, three major Guyanese manufacturers were allowed to display their products at the American Food and Beverage Show in Miami last September.
Samaroo said the WTCG was also working with affiliates in Asia, Latin America, and Africa along with the Guyana diplomatic missions abroad “to open up markets for our brands that we are promoting locally.” The WTCG held a forum on the impact of global shipping on Guyana’s supply chain and formulated several recommendations.
Among the WTCG’s other achievements, he said, was a study, including recommendations, on updating Guyana’s copyright and intellectual property laws after meeting with Guyanese creative industries. A copy of the study was presented to President Irfaan Ali at Friday night’s formal opening of the Centre.
Since the World Trade Center Georgetown license was formally presented to DDL on March 25, 2022, Samaroo said the local affiliate has been “quite active” in the WTC organization by promoting Guyana and its trade and investment opportunities at major fora and countries, including Ghana, India, United States, Colombia, Dominican Republic, and France.
Executive Director of the WTCG, Wesley Kirton, stated that the entity would not be competing with other private sector organizations in Guyana but would offer local businesses opportunities to showcase themselves to more than 300 world trade centers worldwide, spanning over 100 countries, with approximately one million business associates.
He stated that international structural and safety standards had been applied to the new high-tech building. Its “advanced technologies” ensure a safe, secure, and comfortable environment. The integrated security system offers comprehensive visibility and control, combining CCTV surveillance, access management, weapons detection, visitor tracking, environmental sensors, and fire detection and suppression.
President Ali, in brief remarks, expects the WTCG, as an “enabling institution,” to play a crucial role in fast-tracking technology transfer, human capital integration, and business efficiency by adopting the best international practices. “That is why the World Trade Centre and organizations such as these, with the network it has, are so critical for this phase of transformation. It’s no longer a phase of development,” he said. The Guyanese leader said he looked forward to WTCG helping to shape Guyana’s new economic culture in areas such as export readiness, trade facilitation, and global competitiveness.
He restated that his government would establish a zero percent “special investment vehicle” to co-invest with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), thereby reducing the cost of financing and allowing capital markets to match the funding. “It also reduces the risk of lending to SMEs, and with the reduction of risk comes the reduction of collateral requirements, so all of this will come together to help our SMEs,” he said.
Among the issues for SMEs, he said, are increasing their competitiveness, meeting international market standards, and accessing affordable capital and technology. “Without the technology, the viability of businesses will be questioned in today’s environment,” he said.
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