Guyanese agro-processors to benefit from training, interest-free financing

The US Agency for International Development (USAID)/Eastern and Southern Caribbean (USAID) and !nnovate Guyana (!G) have announced the return and evolution of the Economic Development Accelerator (EDA) programme, which would benefit more than 50 Guyanese agro-processors.

The EDA was, in 2021, specifically designed to enhance commercial viability of existing agro-processed products, in order to prepare them for the export market. In collaboration with international partners, 15 of 43 applicants were shortlisted, and benefited from training sessions and hands-on technical assistance. In the end, five awardees were afforded non-reimbursable grants to invest in their export-ready products.
The return of the EDA this year has, however, seen a shift in its focus, in that it has moved from supporting exports to supporting Guyanese food security locally. Being cognisant that food security is a national issue because a significant amount of Guyana’s food is being imported, and especially in an economy recovering from the global pandemic, USAID and !G are addressing this, and lending their support through the EDA collaboration.
As such, the current aims are to enhance manufacturing and distribution of local agro-processed goods, and to prepare the products for local shelves in order that Guyanese consumers might benefit. These objectives are to be achieved through nine months of intensive training and coaching of agro-business owners, plus providing them with technical support to elevate their business acumen and facilitate their access to working-capital recoverable grants to invest in the growth and expansion of their businesses.
CEO of the Guyana Economic Development Trust, Oslene Carrington, has said the initiative under which !G operates outlines that these US$5,000 working-capital reimbursable grants and the evolution of this programme would enable a larger number of agro-businesses to benefit.
Carrington has said that, rather than investing in five businesses, it would be measurably more beneficial to spread the resources to assist more growing companies.
“Our new focus on supporting food security and strategically distributing the resources enables more micro businesses, that would in no way, shape, or form be able to qualify for traditional financing, to benefit. There are a lot of micro businesses who aren’t able to functionally operate or expand due to lack of access to finances, because in order to access, they’ll have to pledge collateral they don’t have; so, we’re the alternative to that,” she said.

USAID/ESC supports this approach to addressing food security. Regional Representative for USAID/Eastern and Southern Caribbean, Clinton D. White, has said, “The Mission prioritises support for economic growth in Guyana and the region through robust accelerator programmes like the EDA, which offer world class business training and technical support. The programme, further, allows access to financing to facilitate growth and improved export potential for MSMEs. We look forward to building on the already impressive results coming out of this programme and the positive impact this is having on food security as part of the agri-value chain.”
The application portal (https://innovateguyana.org/grow/) is now open for agro-processors countrywide who have been operating for more than one year.