“Guyana is an investors paradise”- GO-Invest Director

…says major focus on agri-sector …says major focus on agri-sector

With the rapid economic boom the country is experiencing due to the discovery of oil and gas and its business-friendly regulatory framework Guyana has been deemed as an investor’s paradise. This is according to the Senior Director of Investment at the Guyana Office of Investment (GO-Invest), John Edghill.
Edghill made this comment during a recent edition of the Energy Perspectives podcast where he highlighted that Guyana’s unprecedented economic growth has captured the attention of investors around the world. On this point he noted that this growth coupled with Guyana’s investment legislation has paved the way for Guyana to establish a very friendly investment climate.
“Our investment climate has really been good for a long time. Our Investment Act that was posited since 1994 is very, very friendly and really opens up the door and opens up the pathway for a very friendly investment climate. The Act is what really leads that regulatory framework that allows investors, to be able to activate and flex their muscle here in the country,” he stated.

In this regard, emphasising the importance of ensuring that Guyanese are one of the main stakeholders to benefit from the robust investment climate, Edghill also noted that the Act eliminates all biases and provides both local and foreign investors with the same opportunities.
“So that Investment Act, as I said is very friendly. And it says a few things that I’d like to point out. The first thing is that foreign and local investors are treated equally. There is no discrimination between a foreign and local investor. So if you’re coming in as one of the largest boys on the block, you are treated just as though you are a Guyanese. Even in our Investment Act of 1994, it allows those persons who want to come in and be a part of this rapid and fast-growing economy in the world to be treated just as though they were a homegrown business. So that’s the first thing. And then equally, the local companies, they are not disadvantaged as well. So there’s an equal playing field between both the foreign and the local investors” he asserted.
Edghill also noted that Guyana’s geographical location has also played a significant role in the country’s investment climate. He stated that with Guyana being the only English-speaking country in South America this opens the door for many foreign investors. Edghill highlighted that most of the countries foreign investors are from North America and Europe which have predominantly English-speaking countries allowing for effective and easy communication.
Additionally, Edghill highlighted that despite the massive wealth being generated by the Oil and Gas sector the country is focused on developing a diversified economy in an effort to eliminate the risk of the country encountering the ‘Dutch Disease’.
“Our focus at our office, in fact, when persons come to my office, I don’t even want to have the conversation about oil and gas, because as an investment promotion agency, the oil and gas sector is very clear cut. But we are very concerned as an agency with the type of business-to-business and business-to-consumer type of relationships outside of the oil and gas sector. And we are very concerned with this because of what you said. We are very keen on not having a country that suffers the Dutch disease or the resource curse, or however other persons would like to put it” the director asserted.
In this regard, Edghill highlighted that GO-Invest is pivoting towards developing more traditional sectors, as such he noted that the agriculture sector is of keen interest to the office. Highlighting that with Guyana being one of the main breadbaskets In the Caribbean the country has the potential to expand to becoming a significant food provider globally.
“Looking at many of our traditional sectors and how we can actually develop and bring value to these things are very, very important. Of which agriculture, when I talk about the agriculture sector first, is of a very keen interest. Our country has emerged almost as the minister or ministry of agriculture for the Caribbean region. So our country being, let’s say, the quote-unquote ministry of agriculture, has really repositioned ourselves as to how we can do agriculture regionally and then globally. So looking at agriculture, we have said since 2020 that we want to be able to reduce the food import bill by 25% by 2025. So you have a lot of intermediate savannas that are unused. So those things are very good for corn and soil, for dairy, for legumes and peanuts and all these types of things that we need cultivated,” he stated.
Meanwhile in giving a breakdown of the Government’s plans for the agriculture sector in 2024, the finance minister said Guyana is slated to target premium markets for sugar, while $1.3 billion will be expended by the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) to support increased production and productivity in the rice industry. He also pointed out that 2.6 billion has been allocated to promote the development of the other crops subsector, and a further $1.5 billion has been budgeted for livestock development, while $1.2 billion has been allocated for fisheries and aquaculture development initiatives in 2024. A further $100 million is budgeted for interventions which will see an increased production of citrus and spices. As it pertains to specific incentives for the agriculture sector, these include the removal of Value Added Tax (VAT) on electricity, water, and construction materials, which drastically lowers operational costs for businesses. Additionally, the government is improving infrastructure by constructing farm-to-market roads in key agricultural regions, specifically Regions Five (Mahaica-Berbice) and Six (East Corentyne-Berbice). Notably, 40% of Guyana’s land is available for agricultural investments, offering extensive opportunities for expansion and innovation.