Jamaica can assist Guyana with ensuring that its food exports to the US gain accreditation for entry, according to the island’s Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Aubyn Hill.
While oil and gas was on the agenda of a summit organised by the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the focus of a 38-member delegation of Jamaican business persons and investors was on areas of finance, agriculture, tourism and food export as Hill underscored the benefits of diversification.
“What you do is play to your strength… we leave Americans to play in the NFL and baseball,” Hill told reporters as he listed strengths his country can bring to Guyana, such as training and giving advice for the tourism sector and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) running, along with agricultural investment.
Hill said that Jamaica does not have immediate interest in upstream or downstream oil investments such as refining, but that it can assist Guyana to develop holistically, from the revenue this country earns from oil proceeds.
Pointing specifically to agriculture and Caricom’s target to reduce food imports by 25 per cent by 2025, Hill said that supply chain lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s war in Ukraine should be that the region has to be self -sufficient.
“It means that we have to work together. It means that Guyana that has lands, Jamaica that has big land and other countries in the Caribbean will work to make sure we’re reducing it [imports] because we cannot continue [as is]. Ukraine has taught us that you cannot be dependent; have your food dependency on countries that you’re not even close to. So we, with Guyana with Guyana’s land, with the financing we have from Jamaica; with financing that you’re going to have from the sales of your natural products and the products that you would produce from oil; we have to make sure we grow [food].”
And with exporting food products here being a major setback, Hill pointed out that a Jamaican accreditation agency, which operates in line with United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) standards, is willing to offer its services to Guyana to align this country to export to the US.
He disclosed that the company has already been accrediting rice testing arrangements here and “many of your food arrangements that you don’t even know [of].”
“And we’re planning to have a relationship with Guyana, so that as you produce more food, we provide the testing, in partnership with a Guyanese company that we’re going to work towards setting up with you, to do their accreditation. We have FDA accreditation, we have other accreditations. We’re one of four countries in the world that have an FDA accreditation, to accredit food going into the United States, so you don’t have to be tested when you go there again. So we’re ready to do that,” he added.
But as he underscored that this country has to accelerate its agro-processing industry, he noted that Jamaican financiers and experts are willing to help. “And the agro [processing] business has to be developed. So we’re looking at orchard plants, we’re looking at ordinary root plants, yams, dasheen and so on. And all their full range of products. You’re going to grow soya, you have always been growing rice, and you’re going to improve your sugar. So there’s all kinds of arrangement we must do. We must just stop selling just the raw product, we must process and make sure we add value and we want to see that relationship developed with Jamaica and Guyana. A tremendous future is ahead of us.”
The private sector, the Jamaican Trade Minister reasoned, has a critical role to play. He said that private sector businesses jumped at the opportunity to come to Guyana during this trip and many complained at being left out.
Larger contingent
This is why, when another trade summit is planned, he anticipates a larger contingent.
President of the government-run Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO), Diane Edwards, pointed to the representatives of some 38 companies from Jamaica as she underscored the scope for partnerships here.
Edwards also identified the need for globally recognised food certification as one of the major challenges that Guyana needs to resolve. “I think certification is a huge one because if Guyanese companies want to export, particularly in the food and the life sciences area, you have to be certified and we have the only certification body in the Caribbean that can certify for export and that is US FDA accredited so I think certification is certainly one way where we can work together.”
JAMPRO and the Guyana Office for Investment (G-Invest) signed a memorandum of understanding that allows for interlinking of the private sectors of the two counties to identify areas of partnerships, a move head of G-Invest Peter Ramsaroop believes brings more benefits to Guyana.
“They are looking at certain sectors, how we can link these sectors in more detail; what Guyanese companies are looking for and what Jamaican companies are looking for. A lot of folks get worried when they see foreigners come into Guyana. But actually, the benefit to our companies are more than them, because our companies get knowledge transfer, they get access to capital, they get new markets. And so the private sector is very happy when trade missions like this come in, that actually make sense,” he told the Stabroek News following the signing.
He added, “And I have to commend the Jamaicans. Every company brought in, wouldn’t take away any work from us; they would actually complement in areas that we need. We have to change our thinking to realise partnership is going to be very important. We cannot do it ourselves. You know, we’re too small in human resources to do it all and they’re enthusiastic about forging those partnerships… Jamaica coming in is another good thing.”
Ramsaroop said that Guyana can learn a lot from Jamaica in the tourism, business process outsourcing (BPO), and financing areas, as that country is very mature and generates great income from those areas.
“I want to join the train of the BPO market between Jamaica and Guyana. They’re very mature in that. They have a strong financial sector, they’ve been known for their maturity and then there is tourism. So the President is pushing twinning products. Why not when you go to Jamaica, [you spend] couple days on the beach and a couple days in a jungle. It is similar what we are doing in Barbados,” he said as he pointed to British Airways soon having direct flights here.
Ramsaroop said that a similar trade mission is being planned in Jamaica and he is looking forward to the local private sector’s contribution.
