Growing interest to invest in Guyana

The growing interest in Guyana is clear after the just concluded Guyana International Petroleum Summit and Exhibition (GIPEX), which saw the participation of 250 companies from around the world.

GIPEX, which was held at the Marriott Hotel from November 20 to 22, attracted a number of foreign investors, who used the opportunity to enquire about the possibilities of investing in Guyana.

“Foreign investors are eager to set up businesses in Guyana,” said Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Office for Investment, Owen Verwey, during a press briefing on the final day of GIPEX, last Friday.

Verwey said he met a number of potential investors during the course of the summit, some of whom even signaled a solid interest in returning to invest and form partnerships in Guyana.

“We have had about 19 different meetings in the last three days with different types of businesses…the majority of people that I would have met were extremely positive about their experience at this event,” said the CEO.

He said most of the companies were from North America and the Caribbean, and for some it was not their first time in Guyana. The investors’ interest was in the oil and gas sector but was not specific to exploration.

“They want to look at offering services to support that type of activity (exploration),” said Verwey, adding that the potential investors are also interested in forming partnerships with the locals.

Those foreign investors have signalled their interest, at a time when Guyana has seen a rapid growth in foreign interests and Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) since 2015. It was reported that the FDI is expected to grow further, reaching a record US$1.2 billion by the end of this year.

According to a report by the Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLAC), while FDI flows to Latin America and the Caribbean contracted for the third year in a row in 2017, to US$161.6 billion, a decline of 3.6 per cent relative to 2016 and 20 per cent less than in 2011, Guyana’s FDI flows had recorded a positive, upward trend.
Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan had said that, from a low of US$58 million, in 2016, FDI flows almost quadrupled, in 2017, to US$212 million. These flows have continued this trend, rising to US$826.4 million by the first half of 2019, compared to US$514.8 million for the similar period in 2018.

“Expectedly, FDI flows have concentrated on the extractive sector, in particular gold and bauxite mining and latterly, petroleum exploration. However, as the ECLAC report noted, FDI grew in all sectors, except in manufacturing,” said the minister.

In keeping with the policy to diversify the economic base of the country, in order to avoid heavy dependence on the oil and gas sector, the Government, through an attractive mix of policies and reforms, is positioning the country to take advantage of the international interest in the recently discovered oil reserves, in order to promote other sectors, such as agriculture and tourism.

And so, as the economy evolves, Guyana will continue to make every effort to facilitate foreign investments across the potential economic sectors in the country.