United States Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah-Ann Lynch is urging internationally recognized American companies to set up shop in Guyana.
She made the comment during the sod turning ceremony for a new Courtyard by Marriott in the compound of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) at Timehri, on Friday.
The diplomat said, “A Marriott at the major international airport will ease overnight air connections for travelers and airline staff, facilitate the hosting of meetings and conferences, and be a familiar face to those traveling to the ‘land of many waters.’”
It will be the second Marriott branded hotel in Guyana, after the Kingston, Georgetown facility.
“We already have established U.S. brands here in oil and gas, food service and hospitality,” Lynch said. “I look forward to more of these internationally recognized names coming to Guyana not just to visit, but to stay.”
The diplomat proudly asserted that the U.S. branded project is a mark of Guyana’s steady economic transformation. U.S. international oil companies, ExxonMobil and Hess, are already supporting the economic transformation in Guyana, with billions of dollars plugged into the country through its Stabroek block exploration and production activities.
With those investments and the billions to be made from the sale of Guyana’s crude, companies from around the world are flocking to the South American country’s shores.
Lynch said the country’s future is bright but noted a lack of hotel rooms in recent years, especially around Georgetown, to house the visiting dignitaries, businesspeople, and tourists brought by surging international interest.
She reminded that the hotel is one of eight intended to be built in Guyana in the next few years. This was brought on by demand for a larger hospitality industry in Guyana, and, according to Lynch, “an explosion in new building and infrastructure construction.”
The new hotel, she said, will be a win-win for Guyana and the U.S., adding that it will create jobs for Guyanese, trained for work with a world-class hospitality company.
Lynch said she hopes that the services and knowledge transfer will continue in the coming years.
