CLBD says Guyana’s oil industry is drawing more women into business development programs

Guyana’s expanding oil and gas industry has contributed to a marked increase in women participating in business development, entrepreneurship and supplier readiness programs, according to the Centre for Local Business Development (CLBD).

In a written response to OilNOW on June 29, the Centre said it has noted a sharp rise in female participation since commercial oil production began in 2019, with more women pursuing opportunities linked to the energy sector.

CLBD said it has observed “growth in the number of women-owned and women-led businesses engaging with the Centre’s services and greater participation by women at networking events, supplier forums and business matchmaking sessions, including women entrepreneurs as well as women in leadership positions representing privately owned, partnership-owned and public companies.”

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Beyond those initiatives, the Centre reported higher enrollment by women in oil and gas training and capacity-building programs, including women business owners and female representatives of companies seeking to enter the sector’s supply chain.

“Over the past five years, the Centre for Local Business Development has facilitated direct female training opportunities for approximately 105 women through the full duration of its flagship entrepreneurship programs, AccelerateHer and ElevateAll, with an additional 175 women participating in the Phase One Bootcamp component,” the organisation disclosed. 

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Established in 2017, CLBD provides training and capacity-building programs to help local businesses meet local content requirements and compete for opportunities advised by works with major operators and contractors in Guyana’s offshore sector, including ExxonMobil, SBM Offshore, and CNOOC.

“While the Centre does not maintain comprehensive sector-wide statistics on women participation in the industry, these trends reflect growing interest among women in accessing opportunities created by Guyana’s expanding oil and gas sector,” CLBD said.