Dear Editor,
I am ineluctably constrained to respond to a letter from Mr Narinedat Harripersaud headlined “Minister Persaud’s Power Point presentation was a rehash of a booklet given to the attendees” (07.11.14).
In concluding his letter Mr Harripersaud speaks of my “subjective conclusion of success.” I never described, nor am I in the habit of concluding that a single investment promotion activity is successful since investment promotion is a process, and as I said in my letter to which Mr Harripersaud refers, the true success of the forum will be judged by the investments that result.
Mr Harripersaud also questions whether there was a formal or informal poll to determine that a majority of participants found the forum useful. Did he conduct a poll to determine that a majority of participants did not find the event useful?
Let me inform him here that I did not conduct a poll but rather an informal survey targeting specific participants. In addition, many whom I did not target approached me and others at the head table to indicate that they found the forum very useful. Many had questions and clarifications some of which Minister Persaud was able to address informally.
I am regularly involved in organizing investment promotion activities and always follow up by telephoning key participants, often the following day, to thank them for their participation and to get some feedback. As indicated in my earlier letter I did identify and invite some of the participants, including the foreign businessman to whom Mr Harripersaud refers, and did speak with most of them following the forum. While Minister Persaud was unable to meet this foreign businessman, I know that Honorary Consul Mr Ramzan Roshanali has been in contact with this gentleman and the relevant follow-up is being undertaken.
I am heartened that Mr Harripersaud admits in his most recent letter, that there was at least one viable investor at the forum. His first letter suggested that the participants were a totally wrong crowd. In fact, there were many viable potential investors.
On the issue of Minister Persaud’s presentation, I maintain that it was very good and the information shared most useful.
There is nothing wrong with the fact that his Power Point presentation was a condensation of the information contained in a ‘Doing Business in Guyana’ booklet. Just last Friday I was involved in the planning and chaired a similar event featuring Trinidad and Tobago here in Florida. The presenter, Her Excellency Marina Valere, Trinidad and Tobago’s Ambassador to the United States, made a Power Point presentation, which was most effective and was supplemented with printed investment promotion material.
Mr Harripersaud also finds fault with the lighting in the City Hall chambers where the event was held. I am not aware of anyone complaining about this and I did not have any problem with the lighting. Rather than seeking to manufacture faults about the event Mr Harripersaud might better demonstrate his announced desire to see “Guyana flourish economically” by sharing positive information with potential investors and privately identifying to the Guyanese authorities real issues which, in his view, might hinder investment in the country.
Yours faithfully,
Wesley Kirton
