Guyana is enlisting Caribbean Export, the region’s leading trade and investment promotion entity, to help it to capitalise on export opportunities in existing and new markets under a new round of European Union (EU) funding.
President of the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association (GMSA) Clinton Williams noted that Guyana’s private sector companies had not benefited much from the development assistance provided under the 9th European Development Fund (EDF) last year.
However, plans are in train to take advantage of available opportunities under the 10th EDF. “It is our intention to correct this deficiency by getting Guyanese companies and industry to become integrally involved with the 10th EDF which is to be disbursed between 2012 and 2015,” he told a news conference at the end of a three-day Caribbean Export mission here, under the auspices of the GMSA.
During the tour, business management experts from the Dominican Republic-based entity visited several local industries in the manufacturing, forestry, tourism and agricultural sectors which would aid their assessment of the hurdles that impede the exportation of Guyanese products to European markets, among other pertinent issues.
The major objectives of this venture, according to the GMSA, were to clear the way for the establishment of partnerships among Guyanese and European businesses, and to create avenues for Guyanese products to enter European markets. The team submitted their initial assessment findings to the GMSA last week.
Caribbean Export Director – Competitiveness and Innovation, Christopher Mc Nair said “we have always found that there is a deficiency in terms of Guyanese Enterprises (SMEs) … (they) have not been taking advantage of the entity’s services being provided.”
The options being explored after “countless meetings” include improving communication with local businesses and support organisations like the GMSA and taking advantage of a grant-funded Direct Assistance Scheme of up to 30 million Euros and the Inter-American Development Bank supported Compete Caribbean scheme which has between US$100,000 and US$500,000 available. “We were very, very happy with the opportunities that we were able to see in terms of talking with some of those stakeholders,” he said.
“Essentially what we are saying is that there are funding mechanisms out there, whether we provide them or partners provide them to assist firms, the SMEs to develop the capacity,” McNair added.
Caribbean Export plans to supplement the information available on its website by establishing direct links with export-oriented businesses through the GMSA as well as training trainers in proposal writing “and thereby having a better chance at accessing funding.”
The GMSA plans to disseminate this information to the Private Sector Commission, Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana, Arts and Craft Association and the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce which can all potentially train trainers. Talks were held with enterprisers in the creative industries, organic honey, aquaculture and rice manufacturers, forestry department, call centres and fashion designers.
Mc Nair noted that many investors view the Caribbean as an investment bloc rather than individual countries.
