GCCI calls on foreign investors to include local businesses in supply chains

The Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) on Saturday underscored that local content and participation of Guyanese businesses must remain central to Guyana’s economic expansion, as it raises concerns about the growing exclusion of local businesses from supply chains across several industries in Guyana.
In a statement issued, the GCCI said it “has noted growing concerns over the exclusion of local businesses in supply chains across various industries” and called on foreign investors to ensure greater participation by Guyanese companies and workers.
The organisation stressed that Guyanese citizens and companies must benefit directly from opportunities created through the exploitation of the country’s natural resources and broader economic growth.
“The participation of Guyanese in the extraction and development of the country’s natural resources and opportunities arising from Guyana’s economic development must not be circumvented; local participation remains crucial to the development of the country and its people,” the body said.
The Chamber further urged overseas companies operating in Guyana to avoid side-lining local enterprises.
“The Chamber has remained a staunch advocate for the utilisation of local businesses and the Guyanese workforce, and this has remained a fundamental point in our calls for foreign investors to expand their operations in Guyana. As such, the GCCI is urging foreign investors not to exclude locals from opportunities that arise from their operations in Guyana.”
The GCCI’s comments come amid ongoing discussions surrounding local content, procurement practices, and the extent to which Guyanese businesses are benefiting from major investments entering the country, particularly in the oil and gas sector and other expanding industries.
As Guyana continues to experience an influx of migrants and foreign investors, Guyanese businesses across several industries have become increasingly vocal about the disadvantages they are facing to keep up and compete, in addition to some investors circumventing the use of local labour and services and side-lining locals.
The GCCI statement comes days after the Chinese Association in Guyana issued a statement dismissing concerns of local truck drivers, who protested last week regarding the trucking situation for the transportation of building-related materials.
In the statement, the Chinese Association said that Chinese companies operating in Guyana resorted to establishing their own transportation fleets to “avoid project delays” and “not to seize the local market”.
The issues involving allegations of Chinese nationals taking over the local trucking industry overlap with continued cries from local retailers, who continuously decry the proliferation of Chinese supermarkets and hardware stores across the country.
Native Guyanese continue to voice their fear that Guyana’s rapid economic expansion, brought on by the oil boom, benefits foreign businesses while outpacing local entrepreneurs and workers.