The Florida headquartered Guyanese American Chamber of Commerce (GACC) has initiated efforts to set up a World Trade Center in Guyana by the end of 2020, as it is of the view that the South American oil producing country can benefit tremendously from such an institution.
A release from the Chamber on Friday said that to this end, Mr. John Dickson, president of the World Trade Development Group, is currently in Guyana on the invitation of the GACC and has held discussions about the benefits that could accrue to Guyanese enterprises through the establishment of the WTC in Guyana.
The release said that he has had meetings with Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman, Foreign Secretary Carl Greenidge, Special Political Adviser to the President Dr. Mark Kirton and Dr. Peter Ramsaroop, an economic adviser to the Leader of the Opposition. On the private sector side, he has met with Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) Chairman Komal Samaroo and chairman of Demerara Bank Dr. Yesu Persaud; members of the council of the Private Sector Commission (PSC) led by its chairman, Capt. Gerry Gouveia and other businesspersons from the construction, real estate development and tourism sectors. He also met with Professor Leyland Lucas, Dean of the School of Entrepreneurship and Business Innovation at the University of Guyana and US Ambassador to Guyana Sarah-Ann Lynch.
“Guyana has now emerged as a major player in global business with its oil and gas discoveries. Oil can be a curse if not managed well and an important requirement is that resources be directed to other sectors like manufacturing, especially light manufacturing, agriculture and agribusiness, tourism and the creative industries, among others. These are sectors that offer opportunities for small and medium size enterprises to develop and here is where a World Trade Center in Guyana can be used as a tool to help these enterprises grow through the creation of linkages to assist with market access,” Mr. Dickson said during his meetings.
The World Trade Center Association (WTCA), he said, does not license a center in a city and country based merely on the financial capacity of the licensee but takes into account the reputation, global reach and capacity to fashion a menu of programs and activities relative to the needs of the economy and its small and medium size enterprises. Among the critical activities of a center, he pointed out, should be hands on training for business students and small entrepreneurs, the provision and explanation of laws and regulations and the hosting of incubation workshops.
“I am very impressed with the people with whom I have interacted and am thankful to the Guyanese American Chamber for having invited me and for the meetings it has arranged. Guyana has leaped frogged onto the global business stage and it is important that the opportunities be taken advantage of for all sections of the society. The big businesses really don’t need the tools which a world trade center provides. They already have within them various departments that take care of what they need. But they can play a part in helping to grow the small businesses and so I am happy that a Guyanese company like DDL that is a player in the global marketplace is interested in taking the lead to have a WTC set up in Guyana. DDL is to submit its letter of interest to the WTCA on Monday,” Dickson disclosed in his meeting with Foreign Secretary Carl Greenidge Friday evening.
Dickson explained, during a reception on Friday night, that while governments are not usually license holders, they need to provide a letter of support for the center. “From my interactions with both government officials and Dr. Ramsaroop I am comfortable that whichever political party forms the government following the upcoming elections, that government would support a WTC in Guyana,” Dickson told guests of the reception.
Dickson said his interest in Guyana was heightened last October when he interacted with more than 20 small and medium sized enterprises, many women owned, who had traveled to the US for the Florida International Trade Conference and Expo (FITCE) and with officials from the Guyanese American Chamber including Mr. Kirton, the Chamber’s Chairman Mr. Mohamed Omar and Secretary Ms. Melinda Gordon who is also currently visiting Guyana.
World Trade Centers play a role in the promotion and realization of trade and investment in the economies of cities and countries, especially for the benefit of small and medium size enterprises. There are more than 300 World Trade Centers in over 100 countries around the world, the GACC said in its release.
