Guyana has been in the news recently and all for the right reasons.
Following past periods of economic ups and downs, coupled with political instability and uncertainty, Guyana is well on its way to achieving unprecedented economic growth and prosperity.
The ‘Land of Many Waters’ because of recent explorations, resource allocation and foreign investment has seen growth in several of its sectors. Known primarily for agriculture and bauxite mining, Guyana is currently witnessing a diversification of its economy and the birth of new industries. With these new industries comes the need for suitably qualified and skilled professionals to capitalise on these emerging opportunities.
So what are these emerging and lucrative industries in Guyana?
Agro-processing
While agriculture is an age-old industry in Guyana, recent developments have been made to revitalise the industry to contribute to the economic prosperity of the country. A strategic plan by the Ministry of Agriculture for example, outlines a vision for 2020 and beyond that is based on sustainable and economic prosperity.
This strategy places a new focus on modern farming systems and techniques and biotechnology to increase and improve the quality and quantity of food production. The ultimate aim is to achieve full food security for the nation and eliminate hunger amongst the population.
Under this vision, sugar production for example is expected to increase to 450,000 tonnes this year. Additionally, the agriculture sector is intended to be diversified with increased production of livestock, fish as well as the improvement of soil quality and management of water resources.
With new technologies available, Guyana is set to transform its agricultural sector into an effective and environmentally sustainable industry.
Manufacturing
With increased investment in several sectors such as agriculture for example, the export market within Guyana is expanding with partnerships with foreign organisations being nurtured. For example, the establishment of GuyTIE – a trade partnership involving the government, the Caribbean Export Development Company and the private sector, offers a platform where local businesses can network and engage with foreign investors.
Local producers of manufactured goods such as apparel, construction materials, forest products – plywood, furniture and ceramics can showcase these products to foreign buyers and attract sales and investment. With preferential trade agreements with the United States, Europe, Canada, CARICOM and other bilateral trading partners, local manufacturing companies such as Demerara Distillers Ltd., Fibre Tech Industrial Plastics and John Fernandes Ltd can expect increased trade exports as well as continued support from the Guyana Manufacturing & Services Association.
Petroleum
With recent investment and exploration activities, the country has discovered one of the world’s largest offshore oil reserves. As such, Guyana became an oil-producing nation in 2019 and is set to begin exports in 2020. Attracting the interest on global companies such as ExxonMobil, it is estimated according to consultancy work by Rystad Energy that oil production could reach an estimated 1.2 million barrels a day by 2030. This will enable the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Guyana to skyrocket.
With these developments and ongoing exploration activities, the emergence of a booming petroleum industry in Guyana has brightened the country’s future economic outlook with capital investments surpassing US$3 billion in 2019 and more is expected within the upcoming decade.
Adventure & Business Tourism
With the discovery and the development of Guyana’s petroleum industry, the country is attracting significant foreign attention. This attention develops in the form of increased tourism, particularly business tourism where foreign companies, countries and individuals will look towards Guyana to invest resources and capital into its thriving industries.
Visiting Guyana for business purposes will also generate foreign revenues. Given the booming petroleum industry for example, international hotel chains such as Marriot have already began expanding by establishing a second accommodation within the country. Additionally, with its scenic beauty and rich, cultural heritage, in 2017 alone, Guyana recorded 170,322 visitors to its shores representing a 5% increase from the previous year.
As opposed to the sun and sand product offered by many of its Caribbean neighbours, Guyana offers a distinct tourism product – rainforests, rivers and waterfalls, the most famous of which is the majestic Kaieteur Falls. Guyana also boasts abundant wildlife, numerous species of flora, a variety of fauna and spectacular birdlife all of which its thriving petroleum industry can open to the rest of the world.
Information Technology
The booming petroleum industry requires considerable investment also has to be undertaken in capital and technology. This technology serves not only for exploration and drilling purposes, but the process automation, data storage, wealth management and security this newfound prosperity is expected to bring in.
At the Inter-American Development Bank’s recent VII Regional Civil Society Conference hosted in Guyana, State ministers, heads of agencies, small tech companies, and other members of society discussed ground-breaking ideas about how various industries can use technology to transform Guyana’s economy.
With such initiatives, urban and rural areas of the country can expect increases in telecommunications, data connectivity, social development projects and government e-services. You can visit https://www.caribbeanjobs.com/careeradvice/working-in-guyana-emerging-industries-in-guyana-for-employment for more information on thriving industries in Guyana.
Skills needed for emerging industries in Guyana
With such growth and investment coming into Guyana, the thriving petroleum, manufacturing, tourism and other sectors will need an abundance of suitable skills to conduct business operations and maintain the functions of the industry.
Apply to more career opportunities in Guyana
Due to technology and foreign attention, professionals are required to be adaptive and innovative thinkers.
The manufacturing, petroleum and IT industries will require technical skills such as engineering, data processing and management. Statistical analysis, partnerships with foreign oil giants, corporate governance, management accounting, resource allocation management and financial planning are some of the hard skills that the booming petroleum and technology sectors will require.
Soft skills also will be required in these technical fields to ensure appropriate communication, negotiation and overall management. In addition, increased tourism in Guyana boosts the demand for cross-cultural communication as well as hospitality to provide a welcome stay in the country and maintain a global reputation of an ideal tourist destination.
