President Irfaan Ali yesterday lobbied American businesses for investment here in mega farms and aquaculture.
He was participating in the second edition of the Business Webinar Series where he engaged with over 150 US companies who are interested in doing business with Guyana on the plans for the country’s agriculture sector and the investment opportunities available.
“I welcome you to a country that is open to doing business, that is ready to facilitate growth and development, and that is ready to help private investment to ensure that you have a decent return—a country and a market that believe inherently in the participation of the private sector,” a statement from the Office of the President (OP) quoted Ali as saying during his remarks.
The webinar was organised by the United States (US) Department of Commerce and the US Embassy in Guyana.During his presentation, the statement said Ali outlined a number of investment opportunities in the sector, which include, rice, sugar, corn, soya, coconut, spices, fruits and vegetables, agro-processing, agrochemicals, the livestock sector (poultry, beef, dairy, sheep, and goat) and fisheries-agriculture and shrimp.
According to the statement, Ali said that Guyana has the potential to satisfy all of the food requirement for the Caribbean for poultry products, eggs, beef and aquaculture. “….We have the land, we have the freshwater but what we don’t have is the investment. What we don’t have are the large scale mega-farms that would allow us to produce, that would allow us to facilitate the type of growth that will help us to enter this natural market in CARICOM,” Ali noted.
He also echoed the need for mega investments in the agriculture sector which will bolster Guyana’s already existing ability to satisfy the regional market, the statement said.
“…….In terms of land availability, in every one of these areas, we have lands that are available. We have freshwater…and we have the critical infrastructure link that will allow you to move your produce from the field to the market or to the export facility as it is now,” Ali further said.
Additionally, Ali emphasized on Government’s plans to facilitate the growth and development of the sector, to which 5% of the country’s national budget is allocated to.
The statement noted that Ali explained that agriculture contributes 21.7% of Guyana’s non-oil Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
“In terms of Agriculture trade, the country’s export earnings are about US$370M which primarily comes from rice, fish, sugar, and some amount of non-traditional produce; while the sector contributes to about 12.1 % of employment,” he highlighted.
With regards to the growth of the sector, the statement added that Ali outlined several key features including an ideal tropical climate, large expanse of freshwater and importantly, vast tracts of productive land.
As it relates to collaboration, the OP statement said that Ali added that his Government will be heavily focused on developing the aquaculture sector in the short term to service potential markets including CARICOM, the US, Mexico, and the European Union (EU).
“The USA, for example, imported over 550,000 metric tons of frozen shrimp and prawns valued at US$4.8B. So here is an opportunity for us to work together with the local private sector and the US investors to meet the demand in the United States. And what do we have for the aquaculture industry? We have the brackish water, we have freshwater and salted water, all of which are distinct and comparative advantages in the aquaculture industry,” the statement quoted Ali saying.
The President also discussed investment opportunities in the traditional sectors including rice, sugar and coconut while pointing to tremendous opportunities in corn and soya production, the statement further added.
“I want to say to you that Guyana has also taken back the lead role in agriculture for the region, that is the CARICOM region, and for the purposes of moving forward, we welcome you and your investment to a safe investment destination,” he said.
Ali was joined by Foreign Secretary, Robert Persaud and representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture at State House.
Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha and US Ambassador to Guyana Sarah-Ann Lynch also joined the session.
