Guyana Inc. Magazine Issue 35

YOUR FREE COPY TO KEEP! - ISSUE 35

GUYANA’S OIL ECONOMIC OUTLOOK:

Enhanced Prosperity For Guyanese

GUYANA

- THE AGRICULTURAL INVESTMENT HUB OF THE REGION

A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF GUYANA’S 2018 IMPORTS AND EXPORTS

THE MAN BEHIND TRANSFORMING GUYANA’S LANDSCAPE

Rizwan Nayeem Khan (Twahir)

CONTENTS

Founder and Publisher Teshawna Lall, BA, MBA Managing Director Frank Sanichara Marketing Iconic Marketing & Printing Rozana Mohamed Design Iconic Marketing & Printing Editorial Contributors Richard Rambarran G. Bobby Gossai, Jr. Aditya Persaud Gordon French Marissa Lowden Devina Samaroo Sharmain Grainger Simran Gajraj Shabana Shaw Tiffanne Ramphal GBTI GCCI The Guyana Marketing Corporation The Small Business Bureau The Ministry of Education

24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana, South America.

Tel: (592) 223-2169 or (592) 226-7454

PAGE 6

Publisher’s Note PAGE 10

An Introduction to Sovereign Wealth Funds & Macroeconomic Stability: Part 1 Guyana’s Proposed Natural Resources Fund

The Small Business Bureau: Promoting Entrepreneurship PAGE 30

Could Sleep Paralysis Be The Monster Under The Bed? PAGE 32

Whither Development Planning: A Critical Missing Link In The Macroeconomic Management Of Guyana

For Subscription in Guyana and the Caribbean Contact: (592) 223-2169 or (592) 600-6887 North America: 347-599-6426

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Email: guyanainc@gmail.com Website: www.guyanainc.biz

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While every effort has been made to ensure that information is correct at the time of going to print, Iconic Marketing & Printing cannot be held responsible for the outcome of any action or decision based on the information contained in this publication. The publishers or authors do not give any warranty for the content, explanation or opinion. It is advisable that prospective investors consult their attorney/s and/or financial investor/s prior to following/ pursuing any business opportunity or entering into any investments.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form without prior written permission of the Publisher.

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The Man Behind Transforming Guyana’s Landscape: Rizwan Nayeem Khan (Twahir) PAGE 22

A Comprehensive Review of Guyana’s 2018: Imports & Exports PAGE 26

GBTI - Repositioning as Guyana’s Choice for Banking!

GUYANA’S OIL ECONOMIC OUTLOOK: Enhanced Prosperity For Guyanese PAGE 38

Khalid Kanhai – The Face Behind ‘Exclusive Cuisine’

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Guyana -The Agricultural Investment Hub of the Region PAGE 42

From Beggar To Businessman: How An Amputee Turned His Life Around PAGE 44

Addressing School Safety, Disaster Risk Management are Priorities for The Education Ministry PAGE 46

Saving The Nation From Deafness PAGE 48

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s ’ r e h s i Publ Note

I

Dear Readers,

n a world that challenges our faith, the true significance of Christmas can evade us.

At this time, especially, we need to open our hearts to those who are less fortunate. Let us be honest in our dealings with each other. Visit those who are sick and in need. Comfort the hurt. Be kind. Love. Forgive and ask for forgiveness.

In Guyana, almost everyone celebrates Christmas, irrespective of religion. Our citizens reflect on their inner divinity that yearns for peace and goodwill for all of humanity in spite of their belief in the existence of a God or not.

Christmas 2018 marks the Guyana Inc. Magazine’s sixth Christmas in existence. Despite hurdles, the magazine is still consistent with its publications throughout the year, including its annual Indian Arrival and Diwali editions.

In this 2018 Christmas Edition, we are pleased to feature Mr. Rizwan Khan (Twahir) of the Discount Store. His story is an inspiring tale of a man who emerged on top despite many downfalls and we are thrilled to highlight his accomplishments as much as we did for Cobeer ‘Anand’ Persaud, Dr. Brian O’Toole, Dave Narine, Andrew Boyle and Lars Mangal in the last five editions of our publication.

Also in this magazine is the highlight of Guyana’s imports and exports for 2018 and what it means for the country’s economy. We also emphasized on how crucial the correct management of Guyana’s oil revenues is for the country’s future and how the implementation of a Sovereign Wealth Fund will benefit this new and emerging sector.

We continue to incorporate a wide range of categories that would appeal to readers of all walks of life and ages; including Finance, Tourism, Law and Health.

At this time, the Guyana Inc. Magazine is proud to announce that it has reached the significant milestone of printing its own copies right here in Guyana. This has opened up the opportunity for us to print magazines for others as well. We have also introduced a new batch of prolific writers who add diverse content to the publication.

We owe these successes to you, our faithful readers and sponsors.

As 2019 is upon us, we strive to continue to publish monthly business magazines that will provide informative content of our business landscape here in Guyana and we promise to continue to improve our output - thereby remaining Guyana’s premier business publication.

I encourage all of our readers to be grateful with your present life, for it’s a gift regardless of hurdles. Always remember the past, be it good or bad, for it has shaped who you have become. Put faith into the future and trust that whatever life brings you, you are strong enough to endure.

Best wishes for a joyful Christmas and cheers to a wonderful and productive 2019!

Teshawna Lall, BA, MBA 6

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Ministry of Public Health

Measles & Yellow fever

No Measles & Yellow fever

Measles & Yellow fever

Dr. Karen Cummings administering vaccine to a school girl.

An Introduction to Sovereign Wealth Funds & Macroeconomic Stability: Part 1 Guyana’s Proposed Natural Resources Fund

By Richard Rambarran (Note by Author: The views expressed in this article do not reflect those of any organization to which I am affiliated.)

1. INTRODUCTION The year 2020 will be remembered as a watershed moment in the history of Guyana. However, these years in the buildup to 2020 are pivotal in ensuring that the development path which is charted for the country is one which is sustainable as well as allows maximum benefits to be assimilated to Guyanese. At present, the country is expected to, at current discoveries, benefit from in excess of 500,000 barrels per day – a respectable nominal figure which transforms into an impressive per capita production amount, given the small size of Guyana’s population. Inevitably, this will provide a new revenue stream for the Government and increase the amount of monies available to do development work of the country.

The dynamics of the landscape will transform in an unprecedented manner. One action of pivotal importance is the integration of the oil and gas sector into the macroeconomic framework in a form that does not cause disruption to the stability which prevails. The injection of large amounts of money into an economy is dangerous and, if not managed properly, can be the perfect recipe to a disaster.

Typically, in these scenarios of resource-rich endowments injecting large amounts of revenue into a country, Governments utilize the Sovereign Wealth Fund as one of its principal tools in preserving a stable macroeconomic environment. Therefore, naturally, a Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) tends to exist in situations where there is a fiscal surplus.

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It is this tool that helps to protect a country against the volatility of the international price market for oil and the risks encountered when opening a significant component of a country’s export portfolio to the shocks of an international market. These risks are, of course, exaggerated in a small open economy which is a price-taker on the international market, as opposed to a large open economy which wields significant geo-political and economic influence, and has the ability to manipulate world market prices.

2. GENERAL ISSUES WHICH ARISE FROM OIL & GAS DEPENDENCE In a general sense, there are some specific issues which arise from a dependence on natural resource revenue, particularly in the extractive industries which follow international prices. In a more concrete sense, the following are issues which may arise from a dependence on oil and gas: i. The Natural Resource ‘Curse’ or the ‘Dutch Disease’ – The infamous macroeconomic situation where increased domestic demand stemming from injections of large amounts of money into the system results in increased inflation and significant exchange rate appreciation. ii. Unfair Inter-generational Wealth Sharing – The undesirable situation where there are massive increases in consumption and unfair benefit-sharing between generations. iii.

Budgetary Programming Issues – With unstable revenues arising from persistently fluctuating oil prices, programming forecasted revenue becomes problematic in the budgetary process. This, by logical extension, creates an environment for unstable government spending. iv. ‘Presource’ curse – The situation where a government begins to borrow riskily and heavily against overly optimistic revenue projections based on favorable international prices at the time.

3. GUYANA’S SOVEREIGN WEALTH FUND – THE NATURAL RESOURCE FUND

2. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE NATURAL RESOURCE FUND?

3.1 STRUCTURING THE NATURAL RESOURCE FUND In August 2018, the Government of Guyana advanced a green paper to the National Assembly entitled ‘Managing Future Petroleum Revenues and Establishment of a Fiscal Rule and A Sovereign Wealth Fund’ which outlined the Government’s intention to establish its version of a Sovereign Wealth Fund to manage the expected inflow of resources from the oil and gas industry.

The Natural Resource Fund paper can be divided into seven components. These are set out as follows: 1. Why establish a single fund to achieve multiple objectives?

2. What is the purpose of the Natural Resource Fund?

3. How does the Natural Resource Fund integrate with the National Budget?

4. What is the fiscal rule associated with the Fund?

5. What are the structures for managing the Fund?

6. How are investments to be made by the Fund; and 7. How is the Fund to be reported, audited and what transparency measures are there to safeguard it?

The Natural Resource Fund, according to the Green Paper, has three primary objectives:

In a general sense, the aforementioned seven questions constitute the key components of a Sovereign Wealth Fund. The section below answers the Government of Guyana’s position on these questions.

Therefore, understanding each of these sections provides a clear understanding of the general direction of the Natural Resource Fund. The following will advance the government’s position on these questions.

a.

Economic Stabilization: The Fund should contribute to economic stabilization and ensure that volatility in natural resource revenues does not lead to volatile public spending and ensuring that natural resource revenues do not lead to a loss of economic competitiveness (to guard against the Dutch Disease.) b. Inter-generational Wealth Transfer: The Fund should ensure that there is a fair transfer of natural resource wealth across generations, to ensure that future generations benefit from these resources and the benefits of the proceeds of the Fund do not accrue to a specific generation; and c. Financing Development Gaps: The intent is to use the natural resource wealth to finance development priorities, via the National Budget, as identified in the national development strategy. This, the government says, should go towards the creation of an inclusive, green economy.

3.2 HOW IS THE NATURAL RESOURCE FUND ORGANIZED? 1. WHY ESTABLISH A SINGLE FUND TO ACHIEVE MULTIPLE OBJECTIVES?

The question of establishing a single fund is answered strictly on a cost-basis. The overall cost, when considered, of managing a single fund is lower than managing more than one. The Government highlights that establishing an SWF is complex and there can be substantial administrative costs.

If multiple funds are established, this implies that multiple administrations must exist. There must be multiple governance structures, investment policies and mandates, accounting and external auditing. This can prove to be extremely complex and burdensome on the resources, especially human resources, which are limited in a country with a small labor market. The government cites Timor-Leste and Norway as examples of successful single funds, while Nigeria is cited as an unsuccessful case of multiple funds.

Figure 1 - Intended Operation of the Natural Resource Fund 35th Edition

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3. HOW DOES THE FUND INTEGRATE WITH THE NATIONAL BUDGET? Natural Resource revenues from the extractive industries, specifically petroleum, mining and forestry will be deposited into the Natural Resource Fund which will be held as a US dollar bank at the Bank of Guyana. It is from this account that withdrawals will be made, based on a rule known as the ‘fiscal rule.’ These withdrawals from the Fund will be deposited into the Consolidated Fund to form part of the revenue for the annual budget, along with other traditional streams of government revenue, including loans, tax and non-tax revenues.

Government will then determine its development priorities through its national plan, known as the Green State Development Strategy (GSDS), and the available income.

The Government has stated that priority will be placed on catalytic investments to transform Guyana within the context of the measureable targets, identified within the GSDS. Withdrawals from the Natural Resource Fund cannot exceed the amount approved by Parliament.

This amount, after Parliamentary approval, will be placed into the

Consolidated Fund for utilization according to the priorities identified in the year’s national budget, which draws its inspiration from the GSDS. It is important to note that according to the Green Paper, the only further drawdowns that can be made would be for Petroleum Tax Refunds when necessary. Figure 1 attempts to capture the Public Financial Management constructs associated with the Natural Resource Fund.

4. WHAT IS THE ‘FISCAL RULE’ ASSOCIATED WITH THE FUND? The ‘Fiscal Rule’ is an important instrument as it is this mechanism which will determine the amount of money which can be withdrawn from the Natural Resource Fund. As Figure 1 depicts, it is the Fiscal Rule which acts as the intermediary between the Natural Resource Fund and spending on economic development.

The Government envisages an initial frontloading of spending to address critical development gaps in the earlier years and subsequent progression to higher savings ratios in later years. The Fiscal Rule (Economically & Fiscally Sustainable Amount), shall be the least of: i.

The economically sustainable amount for that fiscal year which shall be determined through a

Figure 2 - An Example of Frontloaded Development Spending Proposed in the Natural Resources Fund Green Paper

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macroeconomic committee; ii. The fiscally sustainable amount for that fiscal year which shall be a mathematically derived amount; and iii.

The balance of the Natural Resource Fund which shall also be a mathematically derived amount.

CONCLUSION Understanding the fiscal rule and its associated mechanism requires sufficient treatment and, as such, shall be the subject of a separate article which will elucidate in great detail the peculiarities and specific determination of the fiscal rule.

The second article in this series on the Sovereign Wealth Funds & Macroeconomic Stability which examines Guyana’s Proposed Natural Resources Fund shall also cover the investment of the Sovereign Wealth Fund as well as its management structures and the transparency and accountability measures associated with it. The third article in this series shall cover the critical perspectives of the Natural Resource Fund, with a view of providing recommendations to improve the proposed Fund.

Richard Rambarran is a development thinker and finance specialist.

He holds a Masters of Arts in Economics and several certificates from the IMF, CEMLA and the United Nations in macroeconomic stability, macroeconometrics, financial programming, sustainable development and other areas. He is a lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of Guyana and is currently the Executive Director of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce & Industry (GCCI).

The Man Behind Transforming Guyana’s Landscape

Rizwan Nayeem Khan (Twahir)

By Gordon French

H

e is as tough as they come and is never afraid to take risks even when others questioned his ambitions. A businessman with a never quit approach and an endearing ability to succeed regardless of the odds before him.

That is Rizwan Nayeem Khan, a simple boy from a farming community in rural Guyana who invested in a shoe dream and is today redefining Guyana’s skyline through strategic acquisition of property.

Rizwan is an inspiration – a dedicated family man who made a name for himself at an early age, molded from the menacing city streets.

With the help of his wife, Bibi S. Khan, Rizwan built an empire from the ground up; from selling shoes out of their home to eventually opening the popular Discount Store on Regent Street and changing the skyline of Georgetown by introducing several unique and modern megastructures to its landscape.

lot of us in that one house,” he recalled.

Fortunately for Rizwan, he was not required to share his weekend earnings.

It was on the streets in front of the iconic market that he also quickly learned how to cut deals with buyers.

“People always wanted a deal. Greens is something that is perishable, so you had to sell out fast. Walking up and down, in no time, I sold out my share. I wanted to sell out fast, because as soon as I done, I would hit the cinema,” Rizwan recalled with a smile as he spoke about his love for Indian movies.

Just as he had completed school, Rizwan returned to Wakenaam to help run his mother’s business. His mother had, at one time, concluded that he was an underperforming student. To this, Rizwan wittily rebutted by stating that he was in the middle of the pack, and not at the bottom.

While on the island, Rizwan also assisted his family in the rice fields.

EARLY Y EARS

TO UGH TI ME

At the prepubescent age of ten, Rizwan journeyed to Georgetown to attend school, leaving behind his mother and the modest farming lifestyle of his hometown, Caledonia on Wakenaam Island, along the mighty Essequibo River.

Upon arrival to the city, he was forced to share cramped conditions with several relatives in a single bedroom home on Wellington Street. Every day was a battle to survive; more so, because Rizwan and his young cousins most days had to fend for themselves.

They assisted their aunt by selling vegetables, or as he puts it colloquially, ‘greens’ at Stabroek Market.

This is where Rizwan cultivated his sharp business acumen.

“Every day when the market closed, we came out on the road with what was left over from my aunt. Every dollar counted because my aunt used to take care of us. It was a

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Eager to earn more, Rizwan yearned to return to the city.

“One day, I was in the rice field when the koker opened and flooded the field. My feet were deep in mud and water. The sun was sharp, so I said this is enough! I remember I had cut my hand also that day. I got vex, threw the grass knife in the water and I walked out of that field. I said I am not able with this thing. That was it! I went home, changed my clothes, packed up my stuff and left for town,” Rizwan related.

However, when he returned to the city, he met different circumstances.

There was no space for Rizwan at his aunt’s house. It was the toughest time for the young lad.

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He knew that if he wanted to survive, he needed to grow up fast.

He opted, though, to press ahead instead of giving up and returning to Wakenaam.

He, along with other relatives, including his uncle, Glenn Lall, Publisher of the Kaieteur News, slept at the back of the Stabroek Market.

“We had fun in the market. We had no one to report to, so after we finished selling in the afternoon, we would go to the movies, Diwali fair and other events. At times, we came out of the movie at midnight, jumped over the market gate and went to the stand. We spread a cloth and slept,” Rizwan said.

As a market dweller, he was required to wake up before the crack of dawn to bathe, sometimes with the murky water from the Demerara River that flowed by the market and nearby boat landing.

Rizwan recalled, “We had to get ready before the people started coming in the market. We bathed, got dressed and tended to my aunt’s stall in the market. In the evenings, we went to the cinema, returned to the back of the market to sleep and then got up early again to get ready. We did this for a number of years.”

Fortunately, he was also able to earn extra money by selling the political newsprint, ‘The Mirror’, which at the time was five cents per paper. Rizwan earned as much as 25 cents per paper because of his strategic approach to buyers. His tactic was to allow some persons to take a free newsprint when they were unable to pay for it.

“The next week, I would go back to them and they paid for two copies. Sometimes, they gave me 25 cents and told me to keep the change. I was making good money those days around the town,” Rizwan stated.

U . S. P U RSU IT

In 1985, when Rizwan was 19, his mom migrated to the United States. It was a time when many from rural communities in Guyana opted to leave in pursuit of a better life.

Rizwan, however, stayed behind to oversee the family’s trucking business and to care for his grandmother. For three years, he trucked rice and coconut into the city.

Whatever little money he made, he banked it.

It was only time, though, until he could no longer resist the migration wave. He decided to leave Guyana to join his mother in the U.S., but his pursuit hit a major bump in the road when he entrusted someone to secure the needed travel visa.

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It was his first time applying for one.

“I was conned,” Rizwan admitted.

He paid $5000 to a man who took him to the former Guyana Airways Corporation office just off Main Street. First, the man entered the nearby U.S. Embassy.

“The man took my passport and entered the building. He must have talked to the secretary at the embassy,” Rizwan recalled.

The man returned from the embassy and related that he needed Rizwan’s passport and a payment.

“He told me don’t come to the airline with him, so I was across the road waiting. I assumed that the door he was going into would be the door that he has to come out from. I did not know at the time that there was a side door at Guyana Airways. The man gone through there and gone with my passport, money and everything,” Rizwan said.

Deflated but not defeated, Rizwan returned to his mom’s trucking business while he waited for his new passport to be processed.

He maintained a good financial record at the then Chase Manhattan Bank.

This, along with a few trips to nearby Trinidad and Tobago, he believed allowed him to secure a multiple entry visa to visit the U.S. Many of his friends and family were excited to have him in the foreign country, but Rizwan felt a deep need to return to Guyana.

It was winter season and Rizwan had started working at a Hess gas station on Hillside Avenue in New York. For two weeks, he braved the blistering cold, often times questioning why he had relocated to earn $3.75 an hour as a pump attendant.

By this time, he was convinced that the U.S was not his calling.

“The money I collected in those two weeks was small compared to what I earned with my mom’s truck. I decided to return to Guyana to roll my truck. I earned $2,000 a week on the truck,so why not?” he decided.

During his short stay in the States, Rizwan rarely saw his mom, who worked as a babysitter in New Jersey. She was upset with Rizwan’s decision to return home, but he held to his conviction.

Before leaving New York for Guyana, he went to Manhattan and invested all the money he made as a pump attendant in the purchase of two suitcases of shoes along with two barrels of clothing.

“I have no regrets, although I believe that if I had stayed, I would have become a major successful investor in the United States. I made a good decision,” Rizwan stated.

TRA DI NG PLA C ES

His return to Guyana was the start of what became a viable trading business. He quickly flipped the Manhattan purchases into profit.

Although he was experiencing more success, he maintained connection with Wakenaam.

On his second trip to the states, he purchased a television, video cassette player and a small generator. These went to his grandmother’s home on the island and served as a form of refreshment and recreation for his family and neighbours, something that was otherwise missing in the community. It was the first television in the village.

“I would borrow seven Indian video cassettes – that is one movie a day. My grandmother made lime drink and shared biscuits with villagers who gathered at the house. Every night around 6, the house was packed. It was movie time. I enjoyed the fun with neighbours and other persons,” Rizwan said.

After his U.S. visa expired, Rizwan then set his eyes on Curacao where he sourced shoes and clothes, items he would return to sell in Guyana.

Some were sold from a stall at Stabroek Market, while he walked the streets looking for lucrative contracts. His immediate markets were Fogarty’s and Guyana Stores.

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In whatever he did, he always ensured that he was saving his money.

“If I come today and made money, before I go back home, I banked the money.

When you’re making money, you have to put up the money or it will go away.

You should not be spending all of your money. Save some for emergencies or for investment opportunities,” the seasoned businessman encouraged.

At this point in his life, Rizwan lived in Eccles along the East Bank of Demerara.

And when he would travel overseas to trade cash for goods, a friend managed his operations at the market stall.

This gave him the freedom to be the roving sales man seeking out major deals.

B I G B R EAK

Rizwan kept searching for greater opportunities, using the skills he had learned from his time in the market and others he had picked up along the way.

One day, he took a big chance. Rizwan decided to pack all the shoes he had and walked into Bata on Water Street, determined to close a deal. He was, instead, directed to the store’s Beterverwagting Branch where he met a Senior Manager.

The two haggled over prices and eventually reached an agreement on a truck loaded with footwear. Rizwan said that the price he got in that first deal was more than expected.

At the age of 21, Rizwan began a long-term lucrative relationship with Bata. He started buying a minimum of one container of shoes per week and made as much as three trips per week to Curacao.

“When I brought my shoes, I took it to Bata. Sometimes, I did not bring enough of them. I even bought raw materials for Bata while still supplying Guyana Stores, Fogarty’s and individual customers,” Rizwan recalled.

T W O B ECOME ONE

In 1990, when his business interests were taking flight, Rizwan decided to pursue the heart of a quiet girl from his home island.

During a birthday party, he laid eyes on Bibi. He was good friends with her father, but he never said much to her, only the occasional greeting although the two lived just about a mile apart.

In the traditional Indian way, Rizwan decided to approach her dad to ask for her hand in marriage. Eight months later, the two tied the knot.

Together, they spent three months in Eccles before unforeseen circumstances forced them to seek alternative accommodations.

Through a lifelong accountant friend, they bought land in the city and constructed a two-storey house at 42 Boyle Place. The lower flat served as a bond for shoes and clothing.

Bibi took over some accounting aspects, ensuring that, financially, the market stall was properly stocked and monies were accounted for.

“I, for one, had a lot of things to do because I was still selling and trying to maintain the larger clients. When wholesale clients wanted stock, they dealt with her at the bond,” Rizwan said.

Business was good. They even employed a driver and bought a small van.

As fate would have it, his accountant friend alerted him to the sale of the Red Rooster, a popular joint on Regent Street, the centre piece of the city’s vibrant commercial zone.

The asking price was US$250,000, but Rizwan only had US$100,000 banked.

He withdrew the money and made a downpayment, but the owners kept increasing the price.

For two months, he waited. At one stage, he was told to collect his downpayment or lose it, but he held out. Eventually, the deal came through with the help of a bank loan.

He was 27 at the time. He recalled standing in front of the property trying to come up with a name for the business.

“We came up with different names. Rizwan Khan and Sherry Khan store, The Discount Store, The Super Discount Store… We agreed to go with The Discount store, but we kept The Super Discount name,” he recalled.

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Rizwan and his wife received muchneeded support at the time from a familiar supplier in Curacao that provided them a line of credit. Eight containers of goods were shipped to Guyana for the Khans. He was allowed to pay for two and pay for the remaining six as the store progressed.

At this time, they still had the initial one stall in the market and had purchased four additional ones.

Still looking to expand, Rizwan set eyes on an adjoining store property on Regent Street, D. Paul and Sons. He acquired the property, tore down the building and started construction on what would become a second section of the Discount store.

On the very day they started the foundation for the second building, his wife gave birth to their first child, Ridwan, born on June 15, 1995.

Rizwan said that the Gafoor family was very supportive in providing a line of credit on building materials. The couple sold two stalls to pay for the construction of the new building.

By 1995, the business accelerated quickly. He went to China with the Curacao supply. They spent three weeks.

In 1996, however, the family hit a difficult patch when Bibi was hospitalized. Rizwan shut part of the store until his wife returned.

“I did not have the patience to run the store. Everyday was something going wrong. So I just became frustrated and shut down a section of the store,” Rizwan said.

When Bibi left the hospital, she renovated the store and re-opened it.

During this year, the couple also had their second child, Fariah Khan.

The children, too, became part of the business, working at the Discount Store after school and during holidays.

“I always feel that if your children don’t know the value of what they have, they aren’t going to learn anything in life. So, it was important for them to learn the business,” Rizwan stated.

He added, “I see a lot of people go down broke. Their parents had a lot of money, but if you don’t know the value of it, you will lose it. Easy come, easy go. The most important thing is to have a good partner.

In business, you need a good partner who would be honest, children who will not steal from you; or your business will collapse.”

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P R OPERTY H UNT

The business grew and with it, Rizwan’s ambitions. Already with two properties in the Lot 102 Camp Street, he pursued purchasing the other two properties.

And then it happened. Ten years after, he purchased the first property on Regent Street, thereby becoming in control of the entire Lot 102 Block.

His expansion continued, purchasing two properties just north of Church Street along Camp Street for storage.

Then, in early 2005, the iconic wooden Metropole Cinema was destroyed by fire. It was a cinema that Rizwan attended many times. It was located a few yards from his Discount store.

“I liked the cinema too, but then it went up for sale a year after the fire. I could not resist. I bought it,” he said.

The property now features a modern structure that houses the American Home and Beauty Supply business.

Four years later, the Kissoon buildings on Camp Street became available for purchase. He sold the two properties he had bought for storage to secure the Kissoon properties and the nearby Friends Hotel.

Sadly, tragedy struck. Fire destroyed the Kissoon property and Rizwan ended up using the insurance payout to pursue new modern buildings.

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Two major buildings rose up at the locations. The construction of both, Rizwan personally supervised, while his wife added the personal touches to the layout.

“We wanted to open 12 food courts there for rental, but as one of the buildings was completed, Teleperformance wanted to set up a call centre in Guyana and they were our first client,” Rizwan said.

He recalls humorously that in his continued pursuit of properties, his wife always says to him that she saves by the dollar and he wastes it by the millions.

“We have an understanding. I am always looking for new business opportunities,” Rizwan explained.

As a testament of Rizwan’s will to succeed, his buildings stand as iconic structures in Georgetown. Their state of the art design lends modernity and manifests the coming of age of Guyana’s capital city to compete with other modern cities around the world, especially at a time when Guyana is under the spotlight due to its tremendous oil finds.

BELI E F S

Rizwan believes in family; spending time on trips around Guyana with them or simply cooking on the weekends.

Rizwan holds dear to the principle of helping others and creating employment for persons. When employees stole from him, he forgave them.

“I always try to find out from that person why they were stealing. I believe the more I give is the more I get. If I got my last dollar, I would give it to someone who needs it more than I do. Plenty time I got conned trying to help others. I have trusted the wrong people in life, but it never stopped me from giving. I believe in giving charity,” Rizwan said.

He maintains that everyone must be treated equally because as one climbs the ladder, there is a possibility that one can fall down.

“Who is at the bottom of the ladder? It is the same people you had no time for. We must remember that the wealthiest people in this country come from very poor and humble beginnings. Anyone can make it,” Rizwan shared.

Rizwan’s life story is still being written. Major plans are still being discussed and, with the help of his wife and two children, where the business goes next is anyone’s guess.

A Comprehensive Review of Guyana’s 2018 Imports & Exports

By Marissa Lowden

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he Bureau of Statistics cites that total imports to Guyana from January to June 2018 is US$923,859.3 while exports constitute US$709,463.5.

THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE, MID-YEAR REPORT 2018 IMPORTS The Ministry of Finance, Mid-Year Report 2018 reports that Guyana’s economy is expected to grow by 4.5 percent.

This growth is as a result of vigorous performances in agriculture, fishing and forestry, of 3.4 percent; services, of 8.2 percent; and construction, of 13.4 percent.

Guyana has seen an increase of building imports by 24.7 percent which reflects the significant surge in the construction sector that is buttressed by the increased pace of execution of the Public Sector Investment Programme (PSIP), which rose by 3.9 percentage points above the previous half year.

As a result of higher trade in imported final consumption goods, intermediate goods and capital goods, the services sector promulgated by 8.2 percent at the half year.

Growth in imports was driven by an overall expansion in all major categories – intermediate goods, by US$92.6M; capital goods, by US$41.1M; and consumption goods, by US$3.6M. During the first half of 2018, the total value of intermediate goods was US$505.3M as compared to US$412.8M in 2017. This expansion was primarily driven by growth in the import of fuel and lubricants, which increased from US$182.4M to US$239M over the review period due to significantly higher prices. There was also noticeable growth in the other subcategories of intermediate goods, with the exception of textiles and fabrics, which declined

by US$0.2M, while “other intermediate goods” and food for intermediate use expanded markedly by US$10.7M and US$10.1M, respectively.

Growth in the total value of imported capital goods was driven by an increase in the value of all subcategories, with the exception of agricultural machinery, which decreased by US$5.6M during the first half compared to the similar period in 2017. Within the overall category, substantial growth was recorded for mining machinery, “other capital goods” and industrial machinery, which expanded by US$13.9M, US$10.6M and US$9.7M, respectively.

The expansion of imports of consumption goods was mainly due to significant growth in food for final consumption and other durables, which increased by US$9.2M and US$8.2M respectively over the reporting period. Further growth in this category was limited by a reduction of US$22.8M in the value of “other nondurable” goods imported.

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EXPORTS Even though there was a growth of US$31.9M in total export earnings for the half year, it was not sufficient to offset the more significant expansion in total import payments.

This growth was as a result of an increase in rice and bauxite exports which expanded by US$33.9M and US$14.9M respectively, supported by an increase in both volumes and prices.

Growth in rice export volumes increased by 42.6 percent to 289,880 metric tonnes and was as a result of further penetration into the Cuban, Mexican and other markets. Additionally, export earnings increased from fish and shrimp, and rum and other spirits, within the “other exports” subcategory, which recorded growth of US$6.8M and US$3.6M respectively.

In contrast, receipts from the other major export commodities – gold and sugar – declined during the first half of 2018 compared to the first half of 2017, by US$19M and US$9.6M respectively. The decline in export earnings from gold was mainly due to lower export volumes, which decreased by 12.8 percent between half-years to 282,615 troy ounces. This unfavorable outturn was largely due to challenges faced by the Guyana Gold Board (GGB) with respect to gold smelting and the attainment of a cost-efficient quantity of gold for export.

At the end of 2018, the overall balance of payments is projected to record a higher deficit of US$182.1M when compared with 2017. The current account balance is expected to weaken to a deficit of US$366.3M, driven largely by fuel imports, while the capital account is expected to post a lower surplus of US$184.1M. WHY ARE IMPORTS AND EXPORTS IMPORTANT? National economies and the global market grow because of the exportation and importation of goods and services.

Each country has its own advantages in resources and skills. In Guyana’s case, there is an abundance of natural resources, with an extensive tropical forest covering more than 87 percent of the country’s territory.

Imports are important for businesses and individual consumers. Guyanese usually depend on imported goods that are not easily available locally or are available at a cheaper price overseas. Additionally, imported products also offer a wider variety to consumers which all bode well for improved standard of living.

However, any country would prefer to be a net exporter rather than a net importer. While importing provides perks such as access to important resources and products at affordable costs that are not otherwise available locally, too much of it will be bad for the economy. If you import more

than you export, more money is leaving the country than is coming in through export sales.

More exports mean more production, jobs and revenue for the domestic economy. If a country is a net exporter, its gross domestic product increases, which is the total value of the finished goods and services it produces in a given period of time. In other words, net exports increase the wealth of a country.

In 2019, the Government of Guyana intends to commit to stimulating investment in our manufacturing sector and exports. As such, the overall balance of payments is expected to improve substantially to a surplus of US$15M. This is primarily due to growth of the capital account to a surplus of US$376.2M, and the current account improving to a lower deficit of US$361.2M. Higher net inflows to the private sector in the form of foreign direct investment will likely be responsible for the higher projected surplus on the capital account. The improvement on the current account will be supported by a lower merchandise trade deficit of US$256.4M as total export earnings are projected to increase amid higher commodity prices and increased production in 2019. Furthermore, total import payments are expected to grow marginally by 0.8 percent, also contributing to the improvement of the current account.

to expedite the regulatory process.

In February 2018, a multi-stakeholder meeting consisting of key players such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Guyana Police Force, the Guyana Revenue Authority, the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest), the Ministry of Business, the Ministry of Finance and the Private Sector, was held to examine and deliberate on the model.

In 2009, feasibility studies were conducted by a United Kingdom-based Crown Agents Consultancy Survey on the implementation of the Single Window in Guyana.

Consequently, recommendation was made to look at drafting Single Window legislation and establishing specific rules for data-sharing between Government and the Private Sector.

The ESW is not only expected to reduce the time to process trade documentations, but it is also expected to improve Guyana’s ranking on the ‘Ease of Doing Business Index’. Guyana currently ranks 134 out of 190 countries.

IMPROVING THE IMPORT & EXPORT PROCESSING SYSTEM As part of improving the system to process imports and exports, plans are underway to adapt the Trinidad and Tobago model of the Electronic Single Window (ESW) under a project being facilitated by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and with funding from South Korea so as to allow Guyana to better compete in the global market. The Single Window is a global platform that facilitates standardized information from State agencies on trade and transport so as

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GBTI - Repositioning as Guyana’s Choice for Banking!

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BTI is Guyana’s premier bank. Our rich and successful history dates back to the establishment of the first commercial bank in British Guiana. Today, our bank has a network of branches spread across the country, even in the most remote areas, in addition to our Corporate Office in Kingston, Georgetown.

GBTI continues to signal its strong support for the nurturing of young talent and cultural affiliation in Guyana, more so with its renewed focus on retail and commercial banking.

We understand the diversity of our customers’ needs, challenges and opportunities; so whether it’s buying a new home, car, planning your next vacation or retirement, saving for your child’s future; or whether you are ready to take that bold step of becoming Guyana’s next business mogul, we are with you every step of the way.

We help our customers realize their dreams and we celebrate their successes.

As the bank repositions itself as the bank of choice in Guyana, it has begun to place heavy emphasis on retail customers.

The bank has an attractive loan offer for this Christmas that will see lucky customers winning trips to Trinidad, local tourism destinations and a stay at the Marriott Hotel in Georgetown.

To be eligible, customers simply have to apply and qualify for any loan of $250,000 and more.

Eligible customers also have a chance to get a VISA Credit Card.

AT GBTI, we understand the needs of our Guyanese people and we know that every Guyanese loves to enjoy a good Guyanese Christmas. Hence, our Christmas loan offer is designed, not only to ensure that our customers and potential customers have a good Guyanese Christmas, but to do so in style.

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So whether you want to spruce up your home, buy a new home, car or special gifts for your loved ones for the holidays, GBTI is here to make it easy for you to do so.

The promotion runs from October to December 31, 2018 and can be facilitated at any of our branches across the country or at https://www. gbtibank.com.

As your trusted financial partner, we are very accessible and we provide over 180 years of experience, knowledge and dedication to support your goals.

We offer a full range of modern banking services adaptable for both retail and commercial customers including Direct and Mobile Banking, access to 25 ATMs and more than 230 Point of Sale merchants. Our large network of correspondent banks facilitates reliable and efficient international business transactions.

At GBTI, we are more than just banking! We are a strong, deeply rooted family with shared goals and a passion to serve our communities. Our commitment extends way beyond the walls of our branches and is demonstrated every day in the opportunities we provide to young entrepreneurs and students pursuing their dreams. The partnerships we develop in the private and public sectors, and the support, time and commitment we give back to communities across Guyana are to help nurture talent, culture and tradition and to improve the lives of our Guyanese families and businesses as we see Guyana through your eyes.

(Article Provided by GBTI)

THE SMALL BUSINESS BUREAU: PROMOTING ENTREPRENEURSHIP

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he Small Business Bureau is an agency within the Ministry of Business on a mission to promote and support entrepreneurial development in Guyana.

The agency works with entrepreneurs and groups to strengthen their business capacity by providing holistic/ comprehensive services to meet their needs.

It also recommends and advocates policies for an enabling environment which supports small business development in Guyana.

Wh a t i s a Small Busine ss?

According to the Small Business Act of 2004, any business that satisfies at least two of the following three criteria, is a small business: * Employs not more than 25 persons. * Has gross annual revenue of not more than G$60 Million. * Has total business assets of not more than G$20 Million.

Support Opportunities Through the Small B u s i nes s Bur eau * Training * Financial Support * Agency Intervention * Promotional and Marketing Support * Business Advice and Guidance

2 0 % G over n me nt Proc ure me nt Prog r am m e For 2019, emphasis will be placed on the Small Business Procurement Programme, which is a joint effort by the Ministry of Business, SBB and Government entities.

It aims to encourage Government procurement (goods, services and works) from small businesses by setting aside all Government procurements below a certain threshold for approved small businesses, subject to existing capacity within the sector.

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In addition to the set-asides, the Programme also includes business support from SBB, including procurement process training, support in accessing financing and an online registry of available procurements.

To participate, businesses must meet the criteria of a small business and provide various NIS and GRA compliance information. Eligible businesses can find more information and apply for registration through SBB with the Programme Registration Form, available at: • SBB office or regional business hub • www.business.gov.gy • sbppguyana@gmail.com The Small Business Bureau works with businesses in all sectors. Access is available to all businesses registered with the bureau.

We also advise entrepreneurs to register with the relevant business development agencies, directly linked to the development of their business type. Other agencies which support small business development are: Guyana Office for Investment (Go-Invest) Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) New Guyana Marketing Corporation (GMC) Deeds and Commercial Registry National Insurance Scheme (NIS) Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) Ministry of Social Protection (Department of CoOperatives) The Bureau looks forward to supporting all small businesses in Guyana.

C ont act Det ail s Lot 1 La Penitence, Georgetown (National Printers Limited Building) Tel: 226-8120/226-8125/226-8143 Facebook: sbbguyana smallbusinessbureauguyana Instagram: sbbmktgy

T

MINIS

NESS SI

SMALL BUSINESS PROCUREMENT PROGRAMME

OF BU RY

GUYANA

SMALL BUSINESS BUREAU Promoting Entrepreneurship

The Small Business Procurement Programme is a Small Business Bureau initiative designed to help small business secure 20% of all government spending on goods, services and works, by setting aside certain contracts specifically for Programme participants and through SBB business support.

ELIGIBILITY

To participate, you must be a small business, meaning you must meet at least two of the following criteria: (I) have 25 or fewer employees

(II) have G$20 million or less in total business assets (III) earn G$60 million or less in gross annual revenues

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS

You must be up to date with taxes and NIS remittances, and submit copies of the applicable documents when applying: BUSINESS DOCUMENTS: • business registration certificate(s) • TIN certificate and GRA compliance letter • NIS card and NIS compliance letter • most recent employer PAYE return • most recent income/corporation tax return OR income statement • most recent company property tax return OR statement of assets and liabilities • operational licenses/standards certificates

APPLY

Complete the Registration Form available at all SBB locations and online at www.business.gov.gy • Follow the instructions carefully, fill out as much as possible and remember to sign both Part 1 and Part 2.

• Submit completed forms with all supporting documents to any SBB location or e-mail to sbppguyana@gmail.com

BENEFIT

Once you are approved and receive your Small Business Supplier Code, you are ready to participate!

• Get trained on the bidding process • Bid for set-aside contracts • Access the supplier info portal • Build your supplier profile • Find out about sub-contracting and joint-tendering opportunities • Find out about financial support

OWNER DOCUMENTS: • TIN certificate(s) and ID card(s) Contact the Small Business Bureau for more information or to get assistance with supporting documentation and registration.

Small Business Bureau, Ministry of Business Lot 1, La Penitence, Georgetown https://sbb.gov.gy

sbppguyana@gmail.com

+592 226-8120 / 23 / 33

COULD SLEEP PARALYSIS BE THE MONSTER UNDER THE BED?

By Simran Gajraj

What is Sleep Paralysis?

Sleep Paralysis is usually described as a temporary inability to move during the period that you are trying to fall asleep or trying to wake up. This usually has no ill effect on your physical health but can be quite terrifying if you are not aware of what it is.

People usually have sleep paralysis once or twice in their lifetime, while others may experience it monthly or on a regular basis. It can affect persons of all ages, but is most prevalent in teenagers and young adults.

Bouts of sleep paralysis are usually accompanied by varying sensations. A common one is the feeling of someone squeezing you or sitting on your chest. Persons may even hallucinate or sense a presence. The terrifying part of these occurrences is the fact that your body does not respond in the way it would if you were fully awake.

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Symptoms of Sleep Paralysis Sleep paralysis usually has one main overarching symptom: being completely aware of your surroundings but being temporarily unable to move or talk.

During an episode of sleep paralysis, you may: • Find it difficult to take deep breaths, as if your chest is being crushed or restricted.

• Not be able to move your eyes, hands or react physically to whatever you may be experiencing.

• Have a sensation that there’s someone or something in the room with you. Many people feel this presence wishes to harm them and most cases of sleep paralysis are mistaken for paranormal activity.

• Feel very frightened.

Episodes may feel as if they are quite lengthy, but in reality, only last about five to seven minutes. You’ll be

able to move and speak normally afterwards, although it may take quite a while to fall asleep again.

It is usually not advised to see a general practicioner until these episodes become increasingly common and start to affect your ability to sleep in general.

Sleep paralysis may be a symptom of the neurological disorder “narcolepsy,” which is characterized by uncontrollable sleepiness throughout the waking day.

Causes of Sleep Paralysis Sleep paralysis happens when parts of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep occur while you’re awake.

REM is a stage of sleep when the brain is very active and dreams often occur. The body is unable to move, apart from the eyes and muscles used in breathing, possibly to stop you acting out your dreams and hurting yourself.

This can sometimes occur while you’re awake, due to varying factors. The most common include: • Sleep deprivation or insomnia; • Irregular sleeping patterns – due to jetlag, studying sessions or work hours; • Narcolepsy – a long-term condition that causes a person to suddenly fall asleep at inappropriate times; • A family history of sleep paralysis; • Sleeping on your back.

melatonin, which is the body’s way of getting you fast asleep.

• Avoid eating big meals, smoking, or drinking alcohol or caffeine shortly before going to bed.

• Get regular exercise, but give yourself some time after exercising before you try to sleep.

• Some studies suggest that trying varying sleeping positions may help reduce the likelihood of sleep paralysis occurring. Most advise avoiding sleeping on your back.

While episodes of sleep paralysis may be frightening, there are ways in which it can be handled and effectively avoided. If regular habitual practice does not change the way you fall asleep or your experience, a doctor may wish to administer medicine to help you deal with sleep paralysis.

Making an effort to have good sleeping habits can have such a profound effect on our quality of life. A good night’s rest allows the brain to rest and recharge, a necessary task to keep our bodies healthy. Identify a bad sleeping habit or bedtime habit you may have and strive to change it. Remember, it only takes one!

Treatments for Sleep Paralysis Sleep paralysis often gets better over time, but improving your sleeping habits and sleeping environment may help.

It can help to: • Be well rested. Most adults need six to eight hours of good quality sleep a night. So put down those tablets and phones before bed and try to be as relaxed as possible.

• Go to bed at roughly the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning.

• Create a sleeping environment that’s comfortable, quiet, dark and not too hot or cold. Darker environments can signal the brain to release

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Whither Development Planning: A Critical Missing Link In The Macroeconomic Management Of Guyana

By Richard Rambarran

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brief inquiry should be made into a critical development tool which is missing in the area of macroeconomic management in Guyana. In Guyana’s current landscape, much intellectual efforts are being expended on the development of the oil and gas sector. In this regard, efforts are not misguided as the private and social benefits which accrue from this sector are transformative – culturally, economically and socially.

However, with intellectual efforts being captured in and around the development of oil and gas and our apt preparation for its coming, there are still critical tools absent from our toolbox of macroeconomic management, which are a necessary condition for the benefits of the sector to assimilate to the Guyanese people at an acceptable rate, foremost of which is the development planning. Particularly the weakened state of development planning, especially medium-term planning, should be an area for concern in macroeconomic management of Guyana.

Since the dismantling of the State Planning Secretariat and the expiration of the National Development Strategy, both coinciding with the early part of this decade, Guyana has been faced with two main developments in its growth story which accentuate the need for the reintroduction of development planning: i. The graduation of Guyana’s income classification to an upper middle-income country, and; ii. The discovery and reasonable expectation of oil and gas revenue.

Since the former speaks about the increased scarcity of financial resources and the latter is oriented to an increase in the availability of financial resources, they may, prima facie, seem counterintuitive. Further investigation would make it pellucid that they are not.

With infrastructural deficit in Guyana, it will be necessary for the government of the day to expend on physical infrastructure – capital expenditure which, in the parlance of development planning, has a long gestation period. Though the spending rules of oil revenues have not yet been legislated through the Sovereign Wealth Fund, there will exist limits to the revenue which government can access for spending purposes. This should reinforce the importance of resource allocation.

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government of the day will have to borrow. With Guyana being classified as an upper middle-income country, we will be forced to borrow on non-concessional terms, which means that the cost of accessing these resources will be greater.

Since physical infrastructure has a long gestation period, catalytic growth from government investment in infrastructure can only be realized if the public spending possesses three characteristics which are mutually reinforcing: i. Complementarities; ii. Inducement to private entities to invest; iii. External economies.

The characteristic of complementarities means that they facilitate the investment and buildup of demand for other goods and services. This will create an inducement to invest for private entities which will create the key to economic growth in the form of the multiplier effect. In dynamic consideration, this should lower the cost of goods and services.

This consideration for development planning had been advanced by scholars such as Albert Hirschman, Paul Streeten and Hans Singer in a doctrine forgotten in the Latin American & Caribbean region known as Unbalanced Growth.

It is important for the requisite infrastructure which have these characteristics and can facilitate backward and forward linkages. These infrastructural areas need to be identified and invested in a synergistic manner since capital expenditure is lumpy and will require the complete package to catalyze growth. A deliberate effort is required on the part of government to programme annual economic spending around the identified facilitating infrastructure, and have the capital expenditure programme for each year’s budget feed into the programmed medium-term target. So, as long as the infrastructural investment facilitates direct productive economic activity, the rate of growth will be catalyzed.

Identification of the infrastructure, the financing mechanism, financial programming and target setting should be undertaken by the development planning institute.

A hidden benefit which will be invaluable to a holistic

economic development will be the signals to private investors that a development plan will exude as it relates to stability and predictability. Foreign and local investors who can reasonably anticipate government’s policy will find it less risky to invest as a pattern of consistent fiscal policy to a programmed target is identified and published and will incentivize investment in sectors which are periphery to oil and gas. This may also act as a tool to gain purchase and mobilize financial resources, since a menu of mutually reinforcing, synergistic projects are offered. The absence of a signal of a stable fiscal policy, particularly in an economy where state is a large spender, can dampen investors’ confidence and damage development peripheral to the oil and gas sector.

Without a proper functioning development plan executed by a strong, stable, well-managed organization, Guyana will not achieve the level of growth which could potentially be realized, especially if the current course of crafting fiscal policy is followed.

Whilst the revenue which will accrue from the oil and gas sector will induce growth higher than the levels we currently enjoy, Guyana will not realize its potential growth rate as the underlying deficits in the financial programming and execution continue to plague.

Ideally, Guyana would benefit from the introduction of the rubric of indicative planning, where a five-year development plan can be crafted with specific medium-term

targets. Each annual budget then feeds into the mediumterm target through financial programming and continuity in a general policy direction is facilitated. This will allow each year’s national budget to feed into a broader policy direction broken into programme objectives.

Continuing along the current ad-hoc public budgeting which we employ will lead to counterproductive, nonsynergistic fiscal policy irrespective of revenue amassed from the oil and gas sector.

While Guyana commits to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and continues to craft its Green State Development Strategy, these SDGs should be seen as prescriptive in guiding policy direction and not be a substitute for development planning and sound macroeconomic programming.

About the Author: Richard Rambarran is a development thinker and finance specialist. He holds a Masters of Arts in Economics and several certificates from the IMF, Commonwealth and the United Nations in Macroeconometrics, Financial Programming, Sustainable Development and other areas.

He is also a lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of Guyana and is currently the Executive Director of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce & Industry (GCCI).

Kit Singh 1/2

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GUYANA’S OIL ECONOMIC OUTLOOK: Enhanced Prosperity For Guyanese

By G. Bobby Gossai, Jr.

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uyana is currently seen as the hottest spot for oil explorers and the country’s optimism is based on reality. Some see Guyana joining the top 10 biggest producers in the world over the next decade.

ExxonMobil has announced a string of large finds within the country’s offshore Stabroek block, estimating recoverable resources at over five billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) - most of it is oil - while Tullow Oil’s offshore Orinduik block potentially holds close to 3 billion boe. There is potential for additional production from significant undrilled targets and plans for rapid exploration and appraisal drilling.

“Guyana is the jewel in the crown, the mother of dragons. That is the hottest exploration area in the world.

It’s no longer frontier, it’s a sub-mature basin,” Eco (Atlantic) Oil and Gas CEO, Gil Holzman, said. The Guyana basin as a whole may hold another 8 to 10 billion boe of reserves. This would take the total to three times what’s been found so far in Guyana’s Stabroek block. As such, it is expected that around fifty exploration wells are to be drilled over the next five years.

Guyana itself might be headed for over 1 million barrels of oil per day of production if exploration succeeds in converting YTFs [yet to finds]. More exploration assets in Guyana are coming into focus for 2019.

“Guyana is a truly world class investment opportunity with multibillion barrels of additional exploration potential,” Hess CEO,

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John Hess, said. Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL) estimates that it will produce more than 750,000 boe per day by 2025 from five or more floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) units offshore Guyana. The Liza Phase 1 development offshore Guyana is expected to produce 120,000 boe per day by early 2020, with Phase 2 expected to begin by mid-2022, producing up to 220,000 boe per day.

The company’s third development, Payara, is expected to begin in 2023.

O I L PRO DUC TI O N A N D GO V ERNMENT REV E N U E The main direct effect of the oil sector on the domestic economy will be through fiscal revenue. Under the revenue sharing agreement, 75 percent of oil production is initially allocated to cost recovery to ExxonMobil and its partners. The remaining 25 percent is considered profit oil and is shared 50-50 with the government. The agreement sets a royalty of 2 percent on gross earnings, which brings the initial government share to 14.5 percent of total oil revenues.

The government share will increase substantially once cost recovery on the initial investment is met (in the late 2020s), and most of production consists of profit oil. As a result, changes to oil prices have a one-for-one impact on fiscal revenue in the first years of production (but lower oil prices would prolong the cost recovery period). The breakeven price for Liza Phase 2 is relatively low at around $35 per barrel, so it would take a major adverse price shock to delay its development plans.

It is worth noting the considerable upside potential as there are other offshore blocks besides Stabroek, and many companies have expressed interest for the ultra-deep offshore block.

Further, the new oil discoveries for Guyana will present opportunities and challenges. The discoveries will provide Guyana with additional revenues for growth-supportive investment and social expenditure, as well as financial buffers against adverse shocks.

However, oil discoveries also tend to make non-oil sectors less competitive via the appreciation of the real exchange rate (Dutch disease) and can induce macroeconomic volatility (van der Ploeg and Poelhekke 2009).

The experiences of natural resource rich countries show that expenditure decisions should be based on the likely duration of the resource boom, the expected income (subject to price assumptions), extraction costs and the time horizon during which exhaustible resources are depleted.

However, Guyana must be cautious as fiscal decisions should not be based on optimistic assumptions about the size and extent of its oil resource booms. Hence, the authorities should not rely on oil resource revenues alone and try to diversify the economy.

Revenues from oil production and rising public investment are expected to increase growth to 13.3 percent on average during 2018–23, while nonoil growth will remain at around 4.5 percent. The oil sector’s contribution to GDP is projected to peak at around 42 percent in 2025. Oil will contribute 3.5 and 6 percent of GDP to revenue

in 2020 and 2021, respectively. That share will increase substantially after cost recovery is met. This will lead to a narrowing of the central government overall deficit, from 5.4 percent of GDP in 2018 to a projected 0.2 percent of GDP by 2023, before turning to an overall surplus, underpinning a sharp downward trajectory in debt levels.

Inflation is projected to increase slightly, averaging 3.1 percent in the medium term. The current account will move to large surpluses after 2020, which will be partially offset by deficits in the financial account as repatriation of revenues from cost recovery by ExxonMobil and its partners is recorded as a divestment of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Gross international reserves will increase, with reserve cover rising to 8 months of imports by 2023.

E VOLUTI O N O F GUYA NA ’ S MACR O EC O NO MI C COND I TI O N The government’s oil revenue is expected to average 5.5 percent of GDP in 2020-22 and 21 percent of GDP in the long run, underpinning the initial reduction in the overall deficit as oil production starts, and subsequent fiscal surpluses which will be accumulated in a sovereign wealth fund. Figure 2 shows the projection of Guyana’s GDP over the short, medium and long terms. In the short term, the GDP is projected to grow on average at 16.6% between the period of 2018 to 2023, on average by 2.2% from 2024 to 2038 during the medium-term and on average by 5.1% from 2017 to 2028, for the long-term.

Moreover, there is a longrun relationship between three macroeconomic variables; the real GDP, the real government expenditure and the real oil revenues. The longrun must have a positive relationship between the real GDP, real government expenditure and the real oil revenues. These indicate that in the long-run, the Guyanese economy can escape the resource curse. Thus, the government is an important institution in the development process, and good fiscal policy could play an important

FIGURE 1: OIL PRODUCTION AND GOVERNMENT REVENUE (Based on Liza Phase 1 and 2 (45 percent of estimated recoverable resources) Source: IMF Guyana Country Report 2018

FIGURE 2: REAL GDP GROWTH RATES Source: IMF Guyana Country Report 2018

role in ensuring that oil resources are a blessing.

In general, oil revenue is beneficial to economic growth, but could be more effective if associated with fiscal policy de-linking fiscal expenditures from oil revenue to insulate the economy from oil revenue volatility (Mehrara 2008). Importantly, the real expenditure will have a positive impact on the real GDP and variations in government expenditure are generally derived by the changes in the oil revenue. Thus, the transmission channel where oil revenue affect GDP is through government expenditure.

Hence, Guyana should control its expenditure, manage oil revenue instability and be more inductive for economic growth and diversity.

The energy sector outlook in Guyana is of considerable contemporary importance, not only for future domestic development.

Hence, the Guyanese economy will become dependent on the oil sector post-2020. The significance of oil for the economy will stem from: its role as a major source of government revenue, oil exports contribution to total exports over the period and as a major share of national income is

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derived from oil production. The oil sector is also expected to generate substantive future revenue, essential for the reconstruction of the economy, its infrastructure and the attainment of sustainable growth.

How effectively these will be obtained will critically depend on the implementation of sound policies aimed at maximising the benefits from current and future oil revenues.

Such policies need to focus upon increasing productivity through increased investment in infrastructure (physical capital), human capital and technology acquisition in the non-oil output sector (Collier et al. 2009).

The benefits for the non-oil sector arising from physical, human and imported capital stock (technology) accumulation induced by oil sector revenue could be substantial in terms of employment and growth generation.

The country’s oil sector development will potentially result in an increase in private capital stock, hence, private sector wealth, real income, domestic physical capital stock, human capital stock, imported capital stock and non-oil supply (and demand). These positive impacts are obviously larger in the fast and medium terms oil production periods. However, the Dutch disease consequences can be developed and

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likely to be confined to the non-oil trade balance during the adjustment process towards long-run steady state.

That is, a development of the oil sector also has the potential to deteriorate the non-oil trade balance through a loss of competitiveness from a real exchange rate appreciation, and it is worse in the case of the rapid oil production period due to higher inflationary outcomes with a fixed nominal exchange rate.

Nevertheless, despite the possibility of a loss of competitiveness of the non-oil tradable sector, non-oil output supply increases throughout the early periods of adjustment. This is attributable to the fact that the Dutch disease effect upon non-oil output can be offset by government development spending on physical, human and imported capital stocks. In the context of the Guyanese economy, this confirms the crucial role that the government, which will regulate and manage the oil sector, must play in enhancing the positive consequences and/or minimising the adverse effects of the oil sector development upon the non-oil sector.

The government could improve productivity and increase the availability and type of capital available for the non-oil tradable sector, such as that for the manufacturing and agricultural sectors, by increasing or changing the

composition of government investment in infrastructure, human capital formation and technology acquisition in these sectors (Brahmbhatt et al.

2010). This will eventually improve their competitiveness.

Further, it will be the responsibility of policymakers to identify where such development spending is best directed, which will require more detailed analysis of key bottlenecks and capacity constraints facing the non-oil sector. Moreover, the benefits for the non-oil sector arising from public capital stock, human capital stock and imported capital stock accumulation induced by the development of the oil sector could be of substantial importance in terms of employment and growth generation.

This emphasizes the importance of bringing about a rapid growth of the oil sector. An increase in nonoil output will possibly lead to an increase in the demand for labour and hence reduce unemployment. Thus, the development of the oil sector will impact the macro-economy, namely through revenue effect, income effect, spending or wealth effect, exchange rate effect, current account effect and technology effect.

The oil revenue will promote long-run economic growth and development.

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Khalid Kanhai – The

Face Behind ‘Exclusive Cuisine’

By Sharmain Grainger

N

estled in the northern section of Kitty, Georgetown, overlooking the seawall, is an eatery unlike any in which many Guyanese have ever dined. This is not surprising since this venue is one that caters to an exclusive few; and with good reason too.

Manned by a self-proclaimed ‘chef’, the cuisines, which can come as individual meals or straight three-course, are the most scrumptious, and many have attested to this.

With succulent flavours clinging to every bite, adventurous mouths are quickly persuaded to surrender to the spell-binding grip of food prepared by the ‘chef’.

But who is the face behind what the Guyana Inc. Magazine can easily describe as ‘Exclusive Cuisine’?

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At the center of this victualing experience is none other than Khalid Kanhai – a simple, down to earth young man who runs a thriving electrical oriented business by day, but much like a super hero, transforms into a gourmet ‘chef’ on Saturday nights.

Operating out of a standard-sized kitchen, Khalid is able to create some of the most astounding delicacies for close family members and friends. His private dining room, just beyond his kitchen, is only opened to an invited few who dare to be enticed by his flavourful taunts that captivate the nasal cavities long before physical platters appear.

However, mere images of his foods have been known to leave many with mouths watering for a taste. On his Instagram page, @khalidkanhai, are images of the many eye-catching dishes that this 32-year-old was able to effortlessly master in his kitchen.

But indulging in the preparation of such enticing foods, which those who have tasted continue to yearn for, is just a favourite pastime for this young man.

During his younger days, Khalid diverted from the business his father had grown over the past three decades to dabble in computer science. He also completed studies in public management, but all the while his passion for cooking never dwindled. This was in light of the fact that it was backed by too strong a force for him to resist.

In fact, what many do not know is that his desire for creating mouth-watering foods has essentially been a manifestation of experiences he had when he was just a boy.

Growing up in the well-to-do close-knit Kitty household of Bibi and Michael Kanhai, the owner of Kanhai’s Electricals and Electronics located at Regent Road, Bourda, Georgetown, Khalid long had an appreciation for eating a variety of good foods.

The young man, who currently manages his father’s business, recalled how his family would routinely dine at what was deemed exquisite restaurants where they were able to savour some of the very finest foods known to Guyanese at that time.

As the youngest and only boy among his siblings, this

family activity was certainly among the most favourite for Khalid.

While he had fond memories of his schooling days at Stella Maris Primary and then at North Georgetown Secondary, it was the savoury foods he consumed that left a notable impression.

But as the years went by, Khalid observed that the flavours in the foods he once enjoyed were no longer as captivating.

This, of course, left Khalid in a very undesirable bind, since he was, by then, a lover of fine and very appetizing foods. Although bent on finding the flavours that he once savoured, Khalid’s first attempts at creating a dish from scratch was, needless to say, unappetising.

“At the age of 14, 15, I was frying chicken and making lasagna for family dinner… But hold on, it was crap! When you bit into the chicken, it was still raw,” recalled Khalid, as a grin on his face quickly spread from ear to ear.

But he persevered, even when multiple dishes were complete fails.

However, it might have been after his exposure to a wide variety of ingredients in the United States, good enough to grab the attention of the most outstanding of chefs, that Khalid was able to unlock his inner ‘chef’. “When I got through with my residency for the United States, I had time to go into the kitchen and I had access to all sorts of ingredients in the US,” recalled Khalid. It was in those moments that he learnt that the existence of flavourful food did not have to be a thing of the past.

Wanting to share his epiphany, Khalid held, on a few occasions, take-away lunch events where he solicited the support of the public to critique his ‘cheffing’ attempts. “A lot of people showed up... I wanted to introduce something different to them,” Khalid shared.

Although that venture was short-lived, Khalid still knew that he wanted to share more of his culinary inventions, as well as other cuisines he’d happened upon during his travels outside of Guyana.

It was with this in mind that the young man brought to fruition the idea of catering to people passionate for the flavours he’d craved for himself.

According to Khalid, his intent was and continues to be to improve his catering ability from the reviews – good or bad – from those who taste his palatable creations.

But since he hasn’t yet decided to embrace his cooking passion to turn a profit, Khalid will, for now, continue to cater to the exclusive dining needs of only those near and dear to him and sometimes, just sometimes, a few others who are quietly invited to dine and savour his magnificent flavours.

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Guyana The Agricultural Investment Hub of the Region

By Aditya Persaud

T

oday, agriculture is one of the biggest businesses in the world. This world is demanding more food now than ever before to simply feed a growing population.

As it is, the world’s population has moved from 6.9 billion in 2010 to a whopping 7.7 billion in 2018. What does this mean for a country like Guyana?

Guyana, a country with a land mass of 215,000 square kilometers and a population of just over 700,000 people, is now being eyed by investors more than ever before.

The Agriculture Sector is one of the largest areas for investment in Guyana’s economy. More than $50B is invested in current expenditure each year by small scale and large farming enterprises. Agriculture can be safely seen as one of the most important productive sectors of Guyana’s economy.

The sector still accounts for over 20% of the GDP in our current economy and still remains one of Guyana’s main export drivers. However, due to the closure of various sugar estates, the export of sugar has declined and this has indeed led to major shifts in those export numbers.

Rice, nevertheless, has shown a continuous increase in exports and the figures have gone past the 500,000 tonnes from since 2015. In 2017, that number had moved to 535,830 tonnes at a value of approximately US$200,000,000 (GRDB, 2018). This clearly shows that there is scope for an increase of rice production to satisfy current and prospective markets which may be right within the Region or more so, the Americas.

Over the years, there has been a constant increase in non-traditional agricultural exports. In 2017, there was a recorded 25% increase valued at GY$3.6B or US$17M in

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non-traditional exports (GMC, 2018). This signals well for the sector as a whole. Prior to this, exports in the area of non-traditional produce were not sending positive signals.

However, that would have changed due to the increasing demands and markets for high quality, fresh and naturally grown produce which can be produced very competitively within Guyana’s agricultural climate.

Guyana prides itself as being a ‘food secure’ nation. This is mainly due to the main agricultural drivers such as fertile land and readily available fresh water along with farmers who have a passion for production in their respective areas of farming. We can safely say that we have an abundance of cash crops, rice, sugar, poultry, swine, beef, fish and fruits; and surely, we can produce more of these to satisfy export markets.

It is evident that demand for agricultural produce will continue to grow and we should not sit idly and wait for that to happen by not starting to plan now. We already know what the market is demanding and we have the land mass and space to cultivate most of these produce. Hence, it is critical that proper planning be implemented to ensure that we tap into all existing and new markets.

Food security and availability is becoming of paramount importance in our modern world and among our neighbouring countries.

Successes of the Agriculture Sector As a nation, we have much to be proud about when it comes to agriculture. The fact that we are food secure and free of certain diseases, such as “foot and mouth” in the livestock industry, means a lot for our marketing potentials. We have

mastered the art of rice cultivation while developing our own varieties, which is done by our own scientists (trained abroad). We have achieved almost 90% mechanization in the rice industry. The drainage and irrigation system has been upgraded to meet the every demand of the respective industries (rice, sugar, cash crops, livestock, etc.).

We have witnessed farmers adapting climate smart techniques and technology to ensure consistent production to meet their market demands. Our laws and regulations have clamped down on Illegal pesticides which severely affect the health and wellbeing of our citizens. These have long term side effects on our population.

There has been an increase in commodities like the 5Cs (citrus, coconuts, cocoa, cassava, cattle) and the 4Ps (pepper, pineapples, pumpkin, plantain). This is mainly due to the markets that existed for these items.

We have also witnessed improvements in our veterinary laboratories’ modern technologies, such as Embryo Transfer, which has led to improved breeds and, in turn, better quality of livestock production and end products in that sector.

But even with all of these success stories, the sector is just producing enough to meet the demands of our Guyanese consumers. We do not have the capacity to export excessive quantities as yet, but there is nothing stopping our farmers and producers from meeting these demands and commencing exportation.

of cash crops, livestock and fruits in order to become a consistent supplier for commercial quantities. What does this mean for Guyana?

Zoning is the systematic and controlled use of land for livestock and the production of crops to produce food for humans. The purpose of agricultural zoning is to protect farmland from incompatible uses that would adversely affect the long-term economic viability of the area within that specific region. Zoning accomplishes this purpose in several ways. Mainly, zoning protects agricultural land by minimizing land use conflicts and precluding land use controversies. If our system were to consider zoning, then monitoring and verification of production activities will become more manageable. Also, logistics planning and cost will reduce significantly.

Thirdly, air transport and logistics have severely affected our export operations in Guyana. Guyana does not have a designated cargo flight to move produce, so suppliers have to depend heavily on commercial airlines to move cargo. The cost for moving produce becomes higher and most items cannot compete in overseas market.

Added to this list, our agricultural production system also lacks trained and dedicated human resource, political will, a workable strategic plan, an agri-development bank, insufficient value addition to commodities and mechanization of non-traditional production and harvesting systems.

Shortcomings of the Agricultural Sector Indeed, failure has been as much a part of the sector as success. There are quite a few areas where the system in which we operate has failed the sector. Starting from the production line upwards, we can examine some that are of major concern.

Firstly, the initial investment cost for agricultural projects are usually very high, unlike certain other areas of businesses. This high cost is most times a deterrent factor for small and medium scale investors. This is also coupled with the high interest rates at most of the lending institutions. On the other hand, if we cannot grow to meet certain quantities, we cannot secure local and overseas market.

To cite an example, a buyer from neighboring French Guiana sought to pack a twenty-foot container of preripened tomatoes weekly. The tomatoes are packed in ventilated cardboard boxes. The buyer indicated that his company will handle all logistics which takes the “headache” away from the supplier(s) or farmer.

However, looking at our capacity, if we were to take all the tomatoes produced locally and pack this container, we would not be able to fill four containers monthly. The reality is, our farmers have to be trained and need to build capacity to operate in groups or cooperatives in order to satisfy these types of markets.

Secondly, our agricultural production system has never considered zoning of non-traditional crops. We have been growing crops such as rice and sugar on the coastal belt for over 100 years. However, to become the “bread basket” of the region, we have to also consider zoning

Recommendations: Possible Areas of Investment Guyana stands ready to welcome investments in numerous areas in the agricultural sector. The world trends are demanding better quality and safer food. Consumers are demanding traceability of their fresh food products as well as ensuring that these foods meet the requisite standards. Guyana is poised to meet these demands.

Some of the possible areas of investments include, agro processing, milk production, aquaculture (prawns, tambaqui, and tilapia), small ruminants production to meet regional markets and cash crop exports for the Caribbean and North America.

Other possible areas of investments include new crops, such as Quinoa. Quinoa is one of the most demanded healthy foods in the world today. It is produced in other parts of South America. We have the right soil type to commence production. It is assured that every pound will be sold. The lands from the closed sugar estates can be considered for such production.

Rubber plantations, citrus plantations, coconut plantations, and roots, vines and tubers mega farms are all areas that have high returns on investments.

Rice cereals (from our local rice) and jaggery (made from sugar) are two other commodities that can be packaged and shipped to overseas markets, and on the plus side, Guyana has a history of being excellent producers.

There are numerous other areas, but we will surely speak of these in future articles.

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FROM BEGGAR TO BUSINESSMAN:

HOW AN AMPUTEE TURNED HIS LIFE AROUND

By Devina Samaroo

W

hat would you do if you were forced to amputate a leg?

For a 44-year-old father of three, the journey went from begging to successful entrepreneurship, and all it took him was an idea and loads of patience!

Richard Muchette grew up in Anna Regina on the Essequibo Coast, where he continues to live and ply his unique trade – making and selling beautifully chiseled wooden toys.

Since he was a little kid, he was drawn to saws and hammers. “Me grow up with them,” he said, and when he grew to adulthood, it was no surprise that he became a carpenter.

With that burning passion for woodworking, a young Richard used to handcraft makeshift toy cars from any scrap wood he could find.

“It never used to be neat or so,” he explained. Richard believes he was born with the talent to create the toys, as no one ever taught him how to do it. As he got older, that hobby faded as he focused on more important things in life, like his job and family.

But some six years ago, Richard and his wife separated and he became a single father of three young boys. It was tough, but he was getting by quite well, raising his sons alone.

Two years later, however, tragedy struck. Richard encountered what he initially thought was a small workplace accident. He stepped on a nail which caused some minor injuries to his right foot.

But then he was hospitalized for close to three weeks and his leg was not healing. In fact, it was getting worse. He made a tough call to self-discharge and visit a hospital in the city, where he was faced with awful news.

Doctors told him that he needed to have his leg amputated, as the infection was going to spread throughout his body.

Though hesitant, Richard approved the amputation surgery, even without a plan of how he will continue to work to take care of his family.

The next two years were filled with much turbulence. Richard was jobless and resorted to begging in the markets. “People used to help meh ‘cause they see I had one leg,” he explained. But it wasn’t the very best of circumstances.

“It was hard for me,” he recalled, explaining that it caused a lot of physical pain to move around short of one limb.

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It was also a dreary and hopeless period for him. “Whole day meh deh pon the bed and me ah get more sick and like the day nah done,” he explained.

One day, he decided to make a wooden toy for his youngest son, just like the ones he made when he was a kid. After carving out the miniature vehicle, Richard decided to take things up a notch and paint it.

Little did he know that it was going to explode into a full-flown business. One of his friends saw the toy and loved it, and posted it onto the social media app, WhatsApp. Persons on his friend’s ‘friends list’ fell in love with the concept, and so the demand grew.

Not only does Richard feel happy no longer having to beg to get by, but making these toys has brought meaning back into his life.

“When me start mek them things, me ah quarrel afternoon time when the day done, cause me enjoy it.

The day ah done too fast,” he remarked.

It’s no easy work making the toys and it takes a lot of patience. Richard can take as long as two weeks to create just one toy, working all day long.

“Me ah plait me foot like ah pandit and sit down on a pillow and work whole day,” he explained, noting that sometimes he skips lunch because he is so engrossed in his work.

His toys attract various prices, but Richard tries to keep them affordable even though he believes the cost of patience is priceless.

The most one would pay for these beautiful pieces would be $15,000, but Richard says his customers don’t complain because they understand and appreciate the time and precision put into making the items.

He rarely makes toys based on orders. He has done so in the past, but customers never came to collect what they would have ordered. Richard prefers to keep a stocked inventory and engage in the traditional practice of selling

his goods.

He one day hopes to pass down his skill to his sons, but he laments that not everyone has the patience to invest into this trade.

“If me ask them boys to take this sandpaper and help me sand this tractor, them gon sit down about five minutes and after that, they gone. Them nah got the patience to sit down whole day like me,” he bemoaned.

He explained that even his carpenter friends have remarked that they can build an entire house but they do not have the patience to make one of those toys.

Though he is very much satisfied with life now and the ‘empire’ he has built for himself, Richard misses his days of being able to move around freely.

“When you been ah get two foot, you used to move around and now you got one foot, you can’t. Like if you want go road, you jump on a bicycle and go, and now if me want go road, me can’t do that,” he expressed.

Richard, nevertheless, accepts that everyone has a purpose in life, and he believes that his is to make toys that will bring smiles to the faces of children.

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Addressing School Safety, Disaster Risk Management are Priorities for The Education Ministry

By The Ministry of Education

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chool safety and disaster risk management are top priorities for the Ministry of Education in order to create safe environments for children and teachers.

This was accentuated recently at a four day Mission held by the Ministry of Education in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); in partnership with the Presidential Agency on International Cooperation of Colombia.

The team from Colombia comprises of Mr. Miguel Ochoa and Juan David Rodrigues, both representing the Secretary of Education; and Adriana Gil, Professor of the University of Antioquia. The Mission is geared at

He said that the goal is to create a mobile system to teach risk management and first aid for the benefit of schools. He said that when discussing the issue of risk management, it must be understood not only in the context of natural disasters, but in other social issues.

Delivering the feature address on behalf of the Minister of Education was Regional Education Officer (Region 10), Ms. Marcia Paddy, who said that in May 2018, a representative from the Education Ministry in the person of Mr. Sherwin Blackman and from the EPA, Ms. Candacie Brower-Thompson, represented Guyana in Colombia in an exploratory visit to gain experience in disaster risk

facilitating the transfer of in-risk management and school safety between Guyanese and the Colombian contingent.

According to District Education Officer, Mr. Sherwin Blackman and Coordinator of the Mission, the partnership started over a year ago between the Education Ministry, EPA and the Government of Columbia.

management in schools. “This was with the understanding that Guyana will do its part in implementing processes that will result in safer and greener educational facilities, that the education sector will work towards the continued reducing of risk at schools and establish an ideal, yet adaptable approach to risk management at the school level,� Ms. Paddy noted.

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She said that the plan to address these issues is not haphazard in any way. Ms. Paddy explained that, “It is a structured, in-depth process that encompasses a variety of approaches and synergies. The Ministry of Education recognises the significance of risk management and school safety in the promotion of best practices of risk management.”

Additionally, she noted that in 2017, the following three schools participated in a competition and were assessed locally based on the vulnerability assessment.

These schools were Diamond Secondary, South Ruimveldt Secondary and Tucville Secondary.

Following this competition, Ms. Paddy said that action plans with recommendations for improving each of the named schools’ safety and disaster risk reduction plans were designed.

Moreover, she noted that the Model Safe School Programme is being piloted at three other schools. These are St. John’s College, Richard Ishmael Secondary School and Dolphin Secondary School.

She said that the long-term expectations as a result of the training is geared at the development of comprehensive protocols for risk management equipment and to ensure teachers and students are trained as first responders with basic first aid skills.

Executive Director of the EPA, Dr. Vincent Adams, said that Guyana is a blessed country. He noted that save for

floods; the country is not affected by any major natural disaster.

Despite this, he reminded that Guyana is still vulnerable since it is below sea level. He posited that risk management and risk analysis will teach Guyanese, especially children, how to be prepared and what to do if certain situations arise. Dr. Adams added that with climate change being inevitable, preparedness is necessary.

Meanwhile, Lieutenant Colonel Kester Craig, Director General (ag) of the Civil Defence Commission, said that children are an important group since they are strong and resilient, adapting to stresses that weaken most adults.

However, he noted that children are still vulnerable.

He said that educational facilities need to be retrofitted to make the environment safe. According to the Director General, this needs to be done at both private and public schools with implements that are simple, applicable and adaptable.

Further, he said that personnel within the school system, including teachers, need to be trained and equipped to protect those persons that come under their charge.

Secretary-General of the Guyana Red Cross, Ms. Dorothy Fraser, noted that training in the areas of risk management and school safety is imperative so that young people, parents and teachers can know how to prevent disaster and administer aid.

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SAVING THE NATION FROM

DEAFNESS

By Shabana Shaw

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LINDNESS, they say, cuts us off from things; but deafness, from people. Twenty years ago, the Audiology Department of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) embarked on a campaign to save the nation from deafness and internal social isolation.

Today, the move is bearing fruit.

For many people, deafness across the country begins, sadly, not through injuries, repeated exposure to loud decibels of sounds from the ubiquitous ‘boom boom’ boxes or industrial noises, but from the womb. This is according to Dr. Ruth Quaicoe, an Audiology Physician at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

“If you are born with a hearing impairment, it’s likely you are not going to be able to develop speech if you’re not identified in time,” Dr. Quaicoe explained.

“Hearing impairment is very serious; it depends on what time

Dr. Ruth Quaicoe performs an audiological check on a newborn at GPHC. it is acquired, the person’s lifestyle and if the rehabilitation service is available,” the Audiologist said.

Fortunately, in Guyana, rehabilitation services are available from birth to help arrest this problem or reverse congenital hearing loss. According to Dr. Quaicoe, studies have proven that if a child with hearing impairment does not receive a hearing aid by the age of 5, they will not develop speech for the rest of their life.

“It has to do with the brain and sounds going in to develop speech and language. So we try to fit everybody before the age of 5.”

Each child born at the GPHC, the country’s premier referral hospital, is subjected to undergo an automated optoacoustic emission (AOE) screening within the first 24 hours of birth.

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This test is again repeated within the first three months to ascertain the final diagnosis.

Caring our hearing is a lifelong mission, Dr. Quaicoe counselled, warning workers who must earn their living in a thundering industrial sector: “If you work at an environment where there is loud music or where machines are loud, after the first few days, your ear will try to repair itself. So the hearing comes back and we have a temporary threshold shift whereby you lose your hearing and then it comes back. But after about 10 years, the hearing doesn’t come back. The threshold will be lost and all you can rely on is your residual hearing,” the doctor said.

For adults, hearing loss can also be attributed to their chosen lifestyle, which includes non-communicable disease (NCDs), smoking and listening to loud music repeatedly, working in noisy industrial settings and, of course, old-age.

Losing one’s ability to hear does have devastating consequences - physically and socially - especially on the latter, where one will be exposed to the disgrace and infamy of stigma.

“Hearing loss can be insidious and has been linked to social and health consequences. This has further triggered disturbing repercussions, such as social isolation and the inability to work and travel,” Dr. Quaicoe stated.

She said that while hearing aids have helped to restore hearing for the older persons, the department makes it a priory to ensure that each patient receives counselling to help them to deal with the stain of living with a hearing ailment.

TO THE RESCUE The US-based firm, Starkey Hearing Foundation, has plugged millions of dollars into the audiological sector to help restore hearing among Guyanese. In the past two years, Starkey has given out some 700 hearing aids to Guyanese.

The free gift of hearing devices comes with lifetime warranty and free batteries for each recipient.

DOs and DON’Ts Dr. Quaicoe reiterated that while early screening is best practise in preventing hearing loss, there are simple dos and don’ts to follow for maximum care of the human ear.

“Don’t clean your ears with cotton swabs; avoid listening to loud music; and when necessary, wear ear protection while working at industrial plants.

“DO NOT CONSUME ALCOHOL,” Dr. Quaicoe warned pregnant women.

No one wants to be cut off from things or people, especially the latter. Guyanese must pay heed to Dr. Mark Ross’ statement that “when someone in the family has a hearing loss, the entire family has a hearing problem.”

一䔀圀 䴀䔀䜀䄀 䌀伀䴀倀䰀䔀堀 䈀唀䤀䰀吀 吀伀 倀刀伀嘀䤀䐀䔀 伀唀刀 嘀䄀䰀唀䔀䐀 䌀唀匀吀伀䴀䔀刀匀 䄀 䴀伀刀䔀 匀倀䄀䌀䤀伀唀匀Ⰰ 䴀伀䐀䔀刀一 䄀一䐀 䘀刀䤀䔀一䐀䰀夀 匀䠀伀倀倀䤀一䜀 䔀一嘀䤀刀伀一䴀䔀一吀⸀

䴀挀䐀伀伀䴀 吀䔀䰀⌀㨀 ㈀㈀㜀ⴀ㄀㔀 ㌀Ⰰ ㈀㈀㔀ⴀ㔀㜀 㤀Ⰰ ㈀㈀㔀ⴀ㌀㠀㌀㘀Ⰰ ㈀㈀㌀ⴀ㤀㠀㤀㘀 匀甀瀀攀爀椀漀爀 䌀甀猀琀漀洀攀爀 匀攀爀瘀椀挀攀Ⰰ 匀甀瀀攀爀椀漀爀 儀甀愀氀椀琀礀 ☀ 䌀漀洀瀀攀琀椀琀椀瘀攀 倀爀椀挀攀猀

THE GUYANA SHOP – THE CENTER FOR LOCALLY AGRO-PROCESSED PRODUCTS

By The Guyana Marketing Corporation (GMC)

F

or over six years, the Guyana Marketing Corporation (GMC) -- the Marketing arm of the Ministry of Agriculture -- through the Guyana Shop, a local supermarket, has provided a space for local Agroprocessors to develop, stock and market their products to the Guyanese public and its diasporas in a way that no other business or agency provides.

Though it recently celebrated six years of being reopened, the Guyana Shop has been in existence for over 30 years. Prior to using its current name, the local supermarket was known only as the GMC Supermarket. During that period, it sold fresh fruits, vegetables and a variety of meats in addition to small-scale agro-processed items.

After the supermarket reopened its doors as the Guyana Shop, the decision was taken to place emphasis on mainly marketing local agro-processed items.As a matter of fact, the number of products being

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marketed there currently has grown tremendously.

“We have come a very long way where agro-processing is concerned, since the opening of the Guyana Shop in 2012,” said its Manager, Kevin Macklingam. Mr. Macklingam said that there were only 600 products on the shelves when the Shop reopened its doors to the public.

But, to the credit of the diligent staff who have been working assiduously to attract new agro-processors to the supermarket, the list of products on the shelves has now grown to 1476 and continues to grow each year.

Not only have the items increased, but the number of agro-processors has also increased. “The number of Agroprocessors has already increased by 100% and the presentation of their products has changed rapidly,” said Macklingam. He also indicated that there have been significant improvements as it relates to the

quality and the overall presentation of the local product.

Rodiekah DeFreitas, who joined the Guyana Shop family with her line of spices (Diekah’s Spices) just two months ago, is beginning to reap the benefits. “My products, since being placed in the Guyana Shop, are beginning to move,” DeFreitas said with a broad smile. “With the different activities that I have been a part of, I must say that they have opened doors for me to better market my products, especially the recently held Farmers’ Market Day where I was able to make meaningful linkages,” she happily explained.

Ms. DeFreitas, through the Guyana Shop, was also introduced to other leading supermarkets in Guyana. She said that because of GMC’s assistance, she will soon be supplying the Bounty Supermarket with Diekah’s Spices.

Meanwhile, Mr. Aubrey John,

owner of GT Fruit Wine, who recently returned to Guyana and introduced his products to the Guyana Shop, said he is enthusiastic about being part of the Guyana Shop family. “I know, from experience, when I want something local, I would go to the Guyana Shop to get it. Because of this, I know it would be the same thing for other persons who live overseas and would want to purchase local products.” He awaits the “unlimited exposure” his product would receive.

In addition to marketing localagro processed products for the year 2018, there has been a plethora of marketing opportunities for agroprocessors, many of which have led to meaningful linkages with farmers, exporters, local supermarket owners and persons who are interested in purchasing agro-processed items.

Some of these invaluable opportunities for the year were the Porridge Sampling Sessions that were held at three Post Offices in Region 4, Agro-processors’ Exhibitions which took place in Regions 4 and 6 and the Emancipation Exhilaration that took place at Stabroek Square. Apart from these marketing opportunities, staff from the Guyana Marketing Corporation, when invited to other exhibitions, be it regionally or extraregionally, would use the opportunity to promote local products available in the Guyana Shop.

The products are not only available in Region 4. It is important to note that beyond its Robb and Alexander Streets location, the Guyana Shop has, over the years, been quite instrumental in securing space for agro-processed products in local supermarkets in seven of the ten administrative regions in Guyana.

These supermarkets include: G&P Jaigobin & Son Supermarket and Safeway Supermarket in Region 2; Ram’s Supermarket in Vreed-enHoop, WBD, and L. Bukhan & Son Supermarket in Parika, Region 3; R. Prasad’s Service Station (Mary), Mon Repos, Railway Embankment, E.C.D, in Region 4; Right Choice Supermarket in Region 5; Rambrich

Gas Station, No. 41 Village, Bengal, Corentyne, Spready’s Supermarket, Port Mourant, Canawaima Ferry Stelling, Moleson Creek and B’s Mart Supermarket, Main Street New Amsterdam, in Region 6; Williams Brother Supermarket, First Avenue Bartica in Region 7; and Savannah Inn Supermarket, Lethem, in Region 9. In addition to that, the Guyana Shop would also supply the Food Maxx Supermarket with local items.

Further, the Shop stocks products from 9 of the 10 Administrative Regions in Guyana, with the exception of Region 7. The greatest concentration of products comes from Region 4. Products are sourced from communities as far as Rose Hall, Region 6; Hosororo Hill and Three Brothers Village, Region 1; North Pakaraimas, Region 8; Aranaputa Valley North Rupununi, Region 9; and Ameila’s Ward, Region 10.

Some of the items available in the Guyana Shop are jams, jellies, sauces, seasonings, several types of flours, porridge mixes, coconut oils, soaps, honey, crabwood oils, coconut cream, teas, a variety of wines, among others.

Expressing her gratitude for the collaboration that has been forged with the Agro-processors over the years, Ms. Ida Sealey-Adams, General Manager of the Guyana Marketing Corporation noted that she looks

forward to the continued support as the Corporation intensifies its efforts to promote local products. She added that through the corporation’s public-private partnerships with supermarkets and other retail shop owners, they have benefitted from the allocation of spaces in their Supermarkets to market local Agroprocessed products.

Elaborating on future plans for the Guyana Shop, Ms.Sealey-Adams said, “It is envisaged that this ongoing relationship will result in Guyana Shop corners in all ten Administrative Regions. Further, plans are in place to establish at least one Guyana Shop corner regionally and extra-regionally in the not too distant future. In this regard, in 2019, the Corporation will undertake missions overseas to pursue this venture.” Ms Sealey-Adams also thanked the supermarket owners who continue to support the Guyana Shop and local agro-processors.

She is also encouraging persons, locally and internationally, to get on board and partner with the Guyana Marketing Corporation to support local agro-processors.

“Individuals and businesses locally, within the diaspora, regionally and internationally, who are interested in partnering with us, can contact us at the Guyana Marketing Corporation for any information they may need,” Sealey-Adams said.

35th Edition

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