Pres Ali urges Caribbean private sector to solve regional transport woes through partnerships

– as African Exim Bank makes available US$3B in funding

With some US$3 billion in funding expected to be made available to the Caribbean by the African Export-Import Bank, President Dr Irfaan Ali urged the regional private sector to form consortiums and take full advantage of the access to financing in order to solve the Region’s maritime transportation woes.
The President was at the time the keynote speaker at the opening of the AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum at the Guyana Marriott Hotel on Monday. In his presentation, President Ali urged the Caribbean private sector not to waste the opportunity to form consortiums aimed at tackling longstanding regional maritime transport problems.

Ali pointed out that not only would his People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government and other Caribbean Governments support the regional private sector’s efforts to address this issue, but they also have support from the African EXIM Bank to tap into.
“I would consider it a severe missed opportunity, by the regional private sector, if they cannot form a consortium and use this opportunity that Exim bank is offering, to end our regional transport failure. And I speak specifically about our maritime transport infrastructure.”
“We can plant and grow as much as we want. We can do agro-processing, manufacturing, and industrial development. We can reengineer the supply chain. But we have to move things. We have to move things throughout the region,” President Ali said.
President Ali has been vocal about the need for a Transport Policy in the Region. As far back as in 2021, while addressing a Regional Sub-Committee on the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME), he had informed them that the Lead Head on Transport has been engaged with a view to developing specific recommendations to incentivise private sector interest and partnership in transport and logistics, in order to better serve the agri-food systems’ agenda.
He explained that the Ministerial Taskforce had recognised transport and logistics as integral to the effective implementation of the Caricom agri-food systems agenda. According to him, there were options being explored.

CPSO
Meanwhile, the President also brought attention to the presence of Caribbean Private Sector Organisation (CPSO) Chairman Gervase Warner, at the forum. Last year, CPSO came in for intense criticism from Guyanese business owners for its efforts to raise concerns over Guyana’s Local Content policy.
“Today I speak to Caricom. The Caricom private sector. And I see my dear friend, from CPSO. Please stand and let us recognise you… normally the guns are aimed at the Government. I want them to stand and see you carefully,” President Ali said when Warner stood in the audience.
Last year, a leaked email had come to light detailing concerns of members of CPSO over Guyana’s recently passed local content law and plans to reach out to the Guyana Government, and ultimately Caricom.
The main contention was that the law, which makes provisions for Guyanese persons and Guyanese businesses to exclusively benefit from the country’s oil and gas sector at specified percentages, violates certain provisions of the Caricom Treaty of Chaguaramas.

The email was signed by Warner, in his capacity as President and Chief Executive Officer of Trinidad-based regional conglomerate, Massy Group, which currently operates business in several sectors in Guyana.
After some exchanges between the local private sector and CPSO and meetings between the organisation and representatives of the Guyana Government including the President himself, however, relations have since normalised. In fact, when the PPP/C Government announced a three per cent reduction of interest rates for loans to poultry farmers earlier this year, CPSO released a statement lauding the move.
It was pointed out by the CPSO in the statement that poultry meat is one of 19 agri-food commodities that are vital to the goals of slashing food import bills to the Region by 25 per cent by 2025. As such, the organisation had noted that the Government’s initiative to broker this reduction was a good one.
In 2022, some US$1.5 billion was made available to Caricom member states by the African EXIM bank, as part of efforts to foster closer ties between the two regions. This figure is expected to increase to US$3 billion, once the remaining Caricom Member States ratify a partnership agreement with the bank. (G-3)