As of April 10, 1,250 local companies have registered with Guyana’s Local Content Secretariat, and 75 of those companies are 100% female-owned.
Women’s participation in the energy sector is rising, with their involvement becoming crucial as the industry expects to need an additional 50,000 skilled workers in the coming years.
1,300 Guyanese women supporting Exxon activities onshore and offshore | OilNOW
ExxonMobil Guyana’s supply chain manager, Hayley Gilbert, highlighted that women are increasingly applying for roles traditionally dominated by men, ranging from field positions to engineering. They are also occupying key roles, including helicopter pilots, marine captains, and senior managers.
Currently, over 50% of ExxonMobil’s workforce is female, well above the industry average. Gilbert emphasized the need to sustain this positive trend to meet future workforce demands and fully utilize the potential of local talent.
Guyana’s Local Content Act has been instrumental in securing jobs for Guyanese nationals. The act includes 40 specified service sector areas requiring local procurement by oil and gas companies and subcontractors. Amendments to further strengthen local content policies are also planned.
Corrected on April 24, 2025* An earlier version (including the headline) of this article stated that women owned 75% of the businesses registered with the local content secretariat. This has been corrected to reflect that 75 of the 1,250 companies that are registered are 100% owned by women. Corrected by Delana Isles, Editor.
