Dear Editor,
Please allow me on behalf of the members of the University of Guyana Economics Society to express great appreciation to the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry for facilitating the attendance of students of the Economics Society at the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) annual regional capital market conference held on October 3 and October 4, at the Pegasus Hotel and Conference Center. Thirty students pursuing Bachelor of Social Science degrees in Economics and Busi-ness Economics from the University of Guyana, through coordination support from the University’s Economics Society (UGES), were afforded the opportunity to attend the two-day conference, free of cost. The Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) in collaboration with the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry hosted this regional capital market 2-day conference in Guyana under the theme “Guyana’s Capital Markets: Wealth creation and Retention”.
The conference saw Guyana being further established as the frontier for investment. Experts met and discussed how Guyana’s Capital Market can be advanced and how this advancement can bring about tremendous opportunities for local businesses. In May 2015, Guyana discovered oil, and over the last eight years, the country has seen vast economic growth and development. A country once viewed as an investment risk and labelled as a Third-World country with a worrisome economic outlook is now being seen as an investment haven with the fastest-growing economy in the world. Our country now promises enormous economic opportunities and generational wealth for those willing to participate in the country’s development. Guyana’s potential as a major player in the international and regional financial markets was reiterated at the conference.
The fact that the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) chose Guyana as the destination for its first hosting of the conference outside of Jamaica is further testimony to the mass potential that Guyana possesses. There is one looming reason why we consider the hosting of this conference here in Guyana as being very important. That reason is the fact that a robust financial sector and stock market are often signs used to determine the strength and prosperity of an economy. For years, Guyana has had a slowly developing financial sector. Several local companies have highlighted that they cannot obtain large sums of capital from commercial banks necessary to obtain contracts and effectively and efficiently fulfil the requirements of these contracts. The experts and professionals present at the conference sought to educate local businesspeople and investors on the benefits of equity financing, such as the ability to acquire large sums of capital without incurring debt and using their years of experience to alleviate the fear that local businesses may possess over obtaining equity financing.
By developing Guyana’s stock market and financial sector, local companies can now acquire money without acquiring a debt. The development of the financial industry and, subsequently, the stock market will provide local investors with the means to earn life-changing wealth. The World Bank reported that over the years the world stock market capitalization rose from $4.7 trillion to $15.2 trillion making stock markets an important means of stimulating economies. As such this is an opportunity for Guyanese to capitalize on investing no matter how small, building wealth overtime, while enjoying liquidity and flexibility in the market. These persons are not confined to any timeframe or day to capitalize on these investments. The experience allowed students to network with some of the most brilliant minds in the financial field, while gaining invaluable knowledge, which has motivated several members of the society to pursue their own personal investments in stock markets.
Students who attended were appropriately apprised on how to feasibly invest in capital markets. Students also had the benefit of networking with some of the prominent persons in attendance including Senior Minister within the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance Dr. Ashni Singh; Dr Marlene Street Forrest, Managing Director of the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) and Richard Rambarran Senior Vice President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI).
Sincerely,
(Name and Address Provided)
