The fourth annual Local Content Summit opened Tuesday with a focus on helping Guyanese businesses move from policy awareness to practical participation in the country’s expanding oil and gas economy.
The two-day event is being held at the Houston Event Centre of the Four Points Sheraton Hotel, under the theme, “From Policy to Prosperity: Unlocking Opportunities Through Collaboration.” It brings together government officials, oil and gas companies, private sector representatives, financiers, and other stakeholders.
Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, delivered remarks on behalf of President Irfaan Ali. He said Guyana’s local content framework was introduced by the government to ensure Guyanese businesses and workers benefit from the petroleum sector.
“There was no local content framework in place,” Singh said.
Local Content Summit to focus on business participation, workforce needs | OilNOW
He said the Local Content Act, passed in December 2021, followed a deliberate decision by the government to put legal requirements in place for Guyanese participation.
Singh said ExxonMobil Guyana Limited and its co-venturers have since placed more than “US$2.5 billion in procurement opportunities with Guyanese companies and nationals.”
According to Singh, more than 2,500 local vendors have participated in those opportunities. He urged businesses to assess whether they are positioned to benefit from the next phase of growth.
“What we have seen to date is really only just the beginning of the Guyana story,” Singh said.
Singh said local companies should not limit themselves to the 40 categories of goods and services listed in the Local Content Act. He said those categories represent minimum thresholds, not the full scope of business opportunities.
“If you can produce literally anything under the sun that they might require, whether it is in the local content schedule or not, and you can satisfy ExxonMobil or their tier one or tier two contractors… there is a business opportunity for you,” Singh said.
He said the demand for skills also presents business opportunities. Singh noted that training once done overseas is now being delivered in Guyana through partnerships between local and international companies.
Summit Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Prestige Management Consultants, Anita Ramprasad, said this year’s summit is centered on moving beyond discussion.
“Policy alone cannot be the destination, but it is only the vehicle, and it is only successful when it translates into outcome for people and businesses,” Ramprasad said.
She said the summit was designed to provide practical insight, dialogue, and action-oriented discussions.
“Success is rarely ever the result of one person’s effort, and it almost always is as a result of people choosing to work together towards a common purpose,” she said.
Day one includes discussions on the direction of Guyana’s petroleum sector, the evolution of the local content framework, a Local Content Secretariat scorecard presentation, financing for businesses, and industry experiences.
Day two will focus on workforce development, skills gaps, and opportunities in agriculture, manufacturing, tourism, and other sectors linked to Guyana’s wider economic expansion.
