Guyana Energy Conference & Supply Chain Expo: Healthy investor interest in non-oil sectors – Jagdeo

The 2025 Guyana Energy Conference and Supply Chain Expo is making waves both locally and internationally.

It has drawn more than 4000 participants from over 60 countries, and while oil and gas remains a key focus, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo has emphasised that the growing investor interest in the non-oil sectors is signalling a broader economic transformation for the nation.
During his weekly press conference on Thursday, Jagdeo indicated that numerous investors from diverse industries — including artificial intelligence, education, and financial services — have expressed strong interest in expanding their footprint in Guyana.
“We want to use the conference to highlight the vast potential Guyana holds beyond oil and gas,” Jagdeo stated. “Many investors are looking at partnerships, technology transfer, and business expansion in various sectors.”

Digital innovation
A significant theme at the conference has been the modernisation of Guyana’s financial sector.
The Vice President pointed out that the current banking system, though stable, lacks the innovative financing mechanisms required for rapid economic expansion; and to address this, the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has pledged US$1 billion in financing, which would enable local businesses to access credit more efficiently.
This includes a discounting facility wherein companies with contracts — such as those with ExxonMobil — can receive immediate financing without additional collateral.
“This is the kind of thing that happens in sophisticated, mature financial jurisdictions but is absent in Guyana. And that’s why I said we need to step up the game to that level; and I’m pleased to say that we had many such discussions,” Dr. Jagdeo disclosed.
Additionally, financial technology companies have presented innovative solutions at the conference, including digital banking platforms that would allow Guyanese citizens, especially those in remote areas, open bank accounts via mobile apps. This aligns with the Government’s push for a digitally-integrated society wherein all citizens have access to finance and transactions can be seamlessly conducted online.
With this in mind, Jagdeo has stressed the importance of economic diversification to ensure sustained prosperity beyond the peak of Guyana’s oil production.
Citing lessons from resource-dependent economies that have experienced cycles of boom and bust, he reiterated the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) government’s commitment to creating strong non-oil industries.
“If we want to maintain national prosperity, we have to, in the interim, create the other sectors to fill that gap whenever that happens. If we do not do that, we will suffer the same fate like many countries in the world, where they have had short periods of growth and prosperity and then long periods of decline, particularly when they rely heavily on resource-based industries and not value-added activities,” Jagdeo explained.

A conference run by Guyanese, for Guyanese
Dr Jagdeo took pride in highlighting that the conference is now fully managed by a Guyanese-led team, unlike in previous years, when it was organized by a foreign company. He also noted that the secretariat (Guyana Energy Conference) running the event is primarily composed of Guyanese women, a testament to the country’s growing local expertise in events’ management and economic policy.
“I think (that for the) two years that APNU did it with the foreign company, policy-makers could not say anything about what they intended to do in the sector… They had no policy to talk about, so they were very scarce there. The ministers would just go and make a speech and disappear, and the speech dealt with everything but policy. Here, if you ask us about any policy in any sector, we had a clear answer for you in the oil and gas sector, or in education and investment possibilities in education,” he pointed out.
The 2025 Guyana Energy Conference and Supply Chain Expo that was opened on Tuesday has brought together industry leaders, policy-makers and stakeholders to discuss latest developments, challenges and opportunities in the energy and supply chain sectors. It has also provided a meaningful platform to connect industry professionals, policy-makers and investors with experts in the energy sector.