A 24-member contingent of Barbadian manufacturing and services companies is scheduled to arrive in Guyana next Thursday for a series of pre-arranged business-to-business meetings in what is the final leg of a multi-country Caricom trade mission.
According to a Barbados Investment and Development Corporation (BIDC) media release, Barbados’ Minister of Industry, International Business, Commerce and Small Business Donville Inniss is leading the visiting delegation, which represents firms from the food and beverage, construction, printing, health and wellness and consulting services sectors.
It noted that the four-day visit is intended to enhance policy dialogue and the exchange of business information, while strengthening the network of business support organisations, promoting trade, and exploring investment opportunities that could yield economic gains for both territories.
The release said the delegation will engage in business-to-business meetings, consult with business support organisations and agencies and explore opportunities for the development of trade relations, joint ventures and other investments.
Open House sessions are also scheduled for January 29, at the Marriott Hotel, where persons interested in doing business with Barbados are invited to attend.
Barbados enjoys a longstanding relationship with Guyana in the areas of trade, tourism, and culture, the release noted, while pointing out that the island’s exports to the Guyanese market reached US$24.2 million in 2014 and were projected to tally some US$25 million at the end of 2015. These exports comprise mainly of building cement, plastic bags, printed paper labels, margarine, water-thinned paints and sweet biscuits.
At the same time, it was noted that Barbados’ imports from Guyana averaged approximately US$15.7 million annually over the period 2005 to 2014 and preliminary estimates indicate 2015 imports to be only slightly lower. The main items imported were non-coniferous wood, tropical wood, molasses, parboiled and other rice and chowmein.
The release said the BIDC is spearheading the mission, with support from the Barbados Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and the Barbados Manufacturers Association. The Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest) is also expected to provide support in keeping with a Memorandum of Understanding that it inked with BIDC in 2014.
