Dear Editor,
After an extensive conference and much fanfare, the question of what is the manufacturing focus of Guyana remains unanswered. Maybe it’s the lack of experience at GO INVEST or maybe it is the reluctance to make substantial investments in a country where law and order remains substandard and the risk of breaching the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act is very high. Since the time of independence, in order to get things done in Guyana, one must know someone in high places. This may have led to the lack of actionable ideas during what was supposed to help accelerate the growth of the manufacturing sector.
If we consider the bauxite industry, there is significant manufacturing potential that the government can pursue in support of the oil and gas sector. This area of opportunity was not formally addressed during the conference. Several break out groups should have been formed and actionable proposals presented. Did the Diplomatic Corps provide an opportunity to sign several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) for the capture of market demand for our manufactured products? Did we sign new contracts for wood and furniture supplies? The fanfare is great, but we must have results which add to the government’s coffers.
What should be our manufacturing strategy and focus? This fundamental question has yet to be answered. A successful conference should have made it clear where Guyana plans to play in this space and how the country plans to win in the space it has decided to focus on. For example, if the focus of the agricultural sector is coconut and sugar cane, then what are the adjacent products that we will focus on manufacturing, and more importantly, who will be buying those products from us? Is sugar a means to focus on making rum which will be sold to the U.S. and U.K. for their hospitality sector? If so, where are the signed agreements that guarantees the demand for our products? The same goes for coconut production. Have we decided that we will focus on producing coconut oil? If so, where are the contracts with key ABC firms for us to supply them with this product? We must avoid having conferences where it is primarily an academic exercise. The end result must be income generation via sales agreements.
The manufacturing focus of Guyana is not an overly complex and complicated multipronged strategy. It is quite simple and should be viewed that way to ensure the appropriate focus is achieved. CRG suggest the following as a starting point for value added manufacturing that aligns well with our current asset base and long-term development strategy: • Bauxite production can focus on manufacturing abrasive products in support of the oil and gas industry; • Sugar production can focus on manufacturing rum in support of the hospitality industry; • Coconut production can focus on manufacturing virgin coconut oil in support of the health and wellness industry; • Wood production can focus on manufacturing furniture in support of the hospitality industry, and, • Gold and diamond production can focus on manufacturing jewelry in support of the fashion industry
The Diplomatic Corps can help provide market access and partnerships with their market leaders in these key market segments. It’s time to get some tangible results from our efforts to stimulate the discussion on manufacturing.
Sincerely,
Jamil Changlee
Chairman
The Cooperative Republicans of Guyana
