FIHAV 2017 opens business opportunities for Guyana

The Havana International Fair of 2017 (FIHAV), which concluded last Friday in Havana, Cuba, saw participation of some 63 countries and more than 1,000 companies exhibiting their products and services. The expo provided several benefits to Guyana and other Caribbean countries.
Cuba is a country with immense market potential, and competition is quickly increasing.  The absence of American competition from many sectors of the Cuban economy is not expected to last much longer, and other countries from South America, Europe, and Asia are aggressively pursuing Cuba’s unique market opportunities.  Therefore, participation at FIHAV allows organisations to ‘get their foot in the door’ and begin developing key relationships with Cuban buyers.
The Guyana delegation to this fair comprised members of the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest). In his synopsis of FIHAV 2017, Guyana’s Ambassador to Cuba, Abdool Halim Majeed, said the Expo was a success and highlighted that the Guyana Embassy and delegation to the expo this year intensified their interface with Cuban businessmen and trade sector.
Ambassador Majeed said the attention garnered by the Guyana booth during the five-day expo has burnished the country’s image. “We have been very active in the Cuban political, diplomatic and business environment. People want to know more about what is happening in Guyana, and when we announced that we were going to participate in the 35th FIHAV, it evoked substantial interest in the Cuban business community,” he disclosed.
Deputy Chief Executive Officer for GO-Invest, Natalia Seepersaud, expressed similar sentiments. “We had a lot of persons finding out about the process in establishing a business in Guyana, and what are the procedures one must go through in establishing a business in Guyana. The Guyana delegation also visited other pavilions and interacted with companies, so that possible business ventures can begin in the shortest possible time”.
The Havana International Fair (FIHAV) is the largest annual multi-sector trade fair in Cuba. This year’s expo ran from October 30 to November 3, at the ExpoCuba fairground located on the outskirts of Havana.