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Transforming a brand into a household name is not easy.

You need a product that is almost universally liked; a track record of innovation and reliability; a reputation for excellence; and a deep connection with your customers which earns their loyalty and trust.

In Suriname, there is one brand that has ticked all of these boxes and more – Wippy peanut butter.

Produced by the Willemsberg family since 1980, Wippy was the brainchild of Clifton Willemsberg, whose father Leonel originally started a business in 1961 to trade in various food items including white sugar and shelled peanuts.

When some items became less profitable the company needed to diversify. Clifton suggested manufacturing peanut butter because they had been working with local peanut butter producers for years, and also already had easy access to a high quality raw material.

The name Wippy was chosen and an eye-catching green parrot named ‘Willy’ (derived from Willemsberg) was conceived as a mascot to boost marketing and promotion.

Wippy peanut butter soon won the hearts of the Surinamese people and is currently sold in over 1,500 shops and supermarkets across the country.

Now, more than four decades since the first jar rolled off the production line, the company is managed by Leonel’s daughter Susan Tjong A Hung-Willemsberg and her niece Genevieve Radjiman-Willemsberg (Clifton’s daughter) who is getting ready to run the business.

Susan believes Wippy has remained popular over the years mainly because it has stayed true to its main objective which is to produce top quality peanut butter with natural ingredients.

We don’t have just one but many unique selling points, Genevieve adds.

We have a minimum of 95% and a maximum of 97% of roasted peanuts in our products. We have no cholesterol or trans fats. The product is packaged in glass jars which keeps it fresh and tasty and guarantees a longer shelf life. We also have a spicy version and our diet line is vegan friendly.

Product innovation has undoubtedly helped to keep Wippy ahead of its competitors. There are now six types of Wippy peanut butter on the market including classic, crunchy, and hot. The sugar-free version, which is sweetened with all-natural stevia rather than sugar, was introduced mainly because Susan is diabetic.

Wippy has also been successfully exported to French Guinea, Barbados, and the Netherlands. Susan says the Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) was particularly instrumental in helping Willemsberg get into the European market (although exports to the Netherlands are currently on hold).

She states: When we wanted to get into the Netherlands, Caribbean Export’s consultants helped us with marketing, training with labelling, research for potential distributors, and trademark registration.

Susan and Genevieve also recently met with a distributor based in Guyana and they have some advice for Caribbean businesses who are trying to export.

Susan suggests: If the company is ready for export, they should take the time to look for a reliable and capable distributor.

Do your homework with regards to the new market. Know your consumers, focus points, their preferences, and which marketing strategies you should use. When you have all this information than you are more than 50% on your way to success.

Genevieve adds: We all want to make more sales for our company. But it is equally important to make these sales with the correct match. Producer/distributor relationships aren’t any different from other relationships. It’s all about teamwork. The producer delivers quality goods and the distributor promotes and sells these goods accordingly.

Maintaining production capacity to fulfil local and export demands is one of Willemsberg’s major challenges, and this was recently made worse during the COVID-19 pandemic when 13 out of 30 staff testing positive for the virus, causing a shutdown of the production facility for five weeks.

The closure led to a total loss of almost $93,000 (USD) in 2021 and $52,000 (USD) of that was from a decrease in sales. The rest of the loss consists of operating costs, employee costs, and rent, Genevieve explains.

She adds: At the moment, 71% of our employees have been vaccinated, but 29% are still not cooperating. It is a big challenge to get the remaining group on board. Conspiracy theories and religion play a huge role in their decision making. It is also a challenge to recruit new employees who are vaccinated.

Meanwhile, the Willemsbergs remain focused on sustaining Wippy peanut butter’s position as one of the leaders in its market. Their short term goals include improving factory productivity; increasing exports; continuing market research to better know their consumers and competitors; and developing a new product.

In the next three to five years, they are also aiming to build a new production facility, and are already scouting for a new location. They also want to buy new machinery after previous Caribbean Export grants went towards two new machines – a shrink tunnel that wraps bottles into trays and a double head filling machine.

Susan is also preparing to handover complete control of the business to Genevieve by the start of 2022. When asked how she feels about stepping aside, Susan states: I am sure that Genevieve will do her utmost. I’m going to train her on as much as I can and then she will do the rest.

Genevieve reveals that Susan has already set her a lot of homework before the final date arrives and says she knows that there is a lot of work ahead.

She adds: Susan has about 45 years of experience and you cannot buy that in any store. You have to have patience and stay open to all the guidance and training that she can give.

I am optimistic because it’s a family business and we need to continue the family legacy.

Fresh turmeric paste from Belize will soon be available on shop shelves in Europe after Caribbean company Naledo signed a deal with Swiss-based distributor Sparkling Revolutions SA.

Naledo’s award-winning wildcrafted, whole root turmeric paste called ‘Truly Turmeric’ will now be seen in natural health food stores and other outlets throughout Switzerland, Germany, and France.

The partnership between Naledo and Sparkling Revolutions took three years to develop. The companies connected in October 2018 at SIAL – the world’s largest food innovation exhibition – which Naledo was able to attend because of support from the Caribbean Export Development Agency and the European Union.

At SIAL, Naledo was shortlisted for the coveted product innovation award and Chief Operating Officer, Nareena Switlo, says the event led to several new business contacts including Sebastian Möbius at Sparkling Revolutions.
Nareena recalls: “SIAL is the largest event we’ve been to so far. Our booth was beautifully set up and Caribbean Export made it easy to participate. It peaked peoples’ interest and confirmed that consumers in the European market would enjoy our product.

“Sebastian reached out to me in November 2018. We started chatting on email about our products and business relationships and he was really interested in us. But then COVID hit and everything was put on pause.

“In 2020, when we won the ‘New Product of the Year’ award at Food Matters Live in the UK, we sent out a newsletter to our subscribers and customers. Sebastian reached out again to say that he was still interested, and he had some clients who wanted the product, and last week we got our first official purchase order.”

The first pallet heading to Europe will contain 1,500 bottles of Naledo’s flagship ‘Truly Turmeric’ paste in two flavours – original and black pepper. The producer has also developed a smaller 125g bottle specifically for the European market.

The company is hoping to capitalise on the current worldwide interest in healthy eating. Research shows that the global natural food and drinks market was valued at $79.1 million (US) in 2016 and is estimated to reach $191.9 million (US) by 2023 – a compound annual growth rate of 17.6%.

Turmeric itself has also become increasingly popular because of its numerous proven health benefits. It positively impacts heart disease and high blood pressure and is also a strong anti-inflammatory, antiseptic and antioxidant.

‘Truly Turmeric’ uses the fresh whole root of the spice to ensure its natural compounds remain potent and intact. The ingredients list for the original flavour are whole root turmeric, cold pressed coconut oil, fresh lime juice, and sea salt. Black pepper cultivated in Belizean forests is added to the black pepper variety.

Nareena says: “I do think that with recent events in the world, people are becoming more aware of what they put into their body, especially in terms of healthy food.

“I also think that people in Europe are expanding their taste buds and a lot of people from different countries have moved there so the diverse food market is growing. It’s a prime time for us to jump in and be the leader in turmeric in the EU.”

Nareena also believes the company’s unique origin story, its promise to treat suppliers fairly, and its commitment to sustainable environmental practices, will be important to consumers in Europe.

Naledo was founded in 2016 by Nareena’s mother Umeeda as a social enterprise. The company focuses on youth entrepreneurship and regenerative agriculture and is a certified B Corporation which means it “balances purpose and profit”.

The small business employs eight young people to manage its factory and works directly with 300 small-scale growers in Toledo, Belize. It also pays its farmers 6 times the fair trade price for tumeric.

“I think there are certain things that we lead on which nobody else can replicate,” Nareena states.

“We do have some ‘contacts turned competitors’ but the quality of their product is not the same as ours and they don’t have our story. What differentiates our product is that we are still the best on flavour and they cannot replicate the way that we monitor and evaluate our environmental impact.”

Nareena also believes that their new distribution partner, Sparkling Revolutions, appreciates the history of Naledo and the company’s mission to invest in education, health care, and improved nutrition for the families and communities that it works with in Belize.

“Sebastian really understands the beauty of the product from the branding side and the story,” Nareena says.

“If you have a unique product, it’s not going to be for everyone, and that’s OK. You have to know who believes in it as much as you do. He really believes in us and that he can sell the product which is a good start to a business relationship.”

She adds: “We all know that the EU is one of the largest markets in the world and we’re hoping that this one pallet will lead to full container loads. In the next year we want our paste to be sold all across Europe.

“The price seems right so we just have to see what the consumer thinks of it.”

The Caribbean Export Development Agency is committed to ensuring that its processes and practices are consistent with international standards and has taken the step today to make its audit reports available online.

“It’s Caribbean Export’s ambition to be one of the most transparent regional institutions and, today I’m very pleased to make our audit reports public” said Executive Director, Deodat Maharaj. He continued, “As we strive to become even more customer-focused and results-driven to advance private sector development in the Region ,we will continue to recognise that accountability, transparency and value for money represent our core values as an Agency.”

The Agency will continue to review and update other systems and operational procedures in order to stay compliant in the weeks and months ahead.

Please click here to download and view the reports.

Arguably, we have never seen a stronger case made for global leaders to invest in our Region’s future survival than that put forward by the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley at COP26, the climate summit that took place in Glasgow, Scotland. If ever there was a time to press the reset button for our development agenda, it is now, with business playing a central and important leadership role.

It is with this spirit and momentum we need to approach the new trade partnership with the UK as a critical opportunity to advance a transformational agenda, creating jobs and opportunity for our people. We need to capitalise on the advantages of longstanding trade ties and friendship between the UK and the Caribbean to give life to this agreement by focusing on the private sector as we strive to deepen our trade and investment relationship. This is vital as we seek to transition to a green economy, which is essential given the fact we are one of the most climate vulnerable regions on the planet. Quite simply, time is not on our side.

Signed on the 1 January 2021, the CARIFORUM-UK Economic Partnership Agreement, has the potential to make a difference in economies across the CARIFORUM Caribbean, which is a grouping of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Dominican Republic. We need to give purpose to the document so it can generate real game-changing outcomes for our people. This is precisely why we at Caribbean Export are partnering with the United Kingdom to convene a virtual summit taking place on 24 November bringing together businesses, trade promotion experts and high-level officials from the UK and Caribbean to look at how we can work together to give life and meaning to this agreement. It is clear that we must deliver concrete and practical results where it matters the most, on the ground and at the firm level. It is good to see the strong interest shown with close to 500 participants already registered.

Trade between the UK and CARIFORUM Caribbean countries amounted to GBP £2.9 billion in 2020. Given the historical and strong people-to-people ties, this is a fraction of what can be realised. Therefore, to make this agreement achieve its full potential we need to be both bold and ambitious in forging a common agenda, including a focus on a green economy transition here in the Caribbean.

There are clear benefits for both sides. For us in the Caribbean, we can capitalise on the UK’s status as a world leader in the renewables sector as we seek to also revolve our economies around energy that is clean and green. Additionally, technology and innovation represent another area that are vital to us especially in areas such as agriculture which needs to be more climate-resilient, so we can have the ability to feed our people. For our businesses, the UK represents a major high-value market for our existing and potential exporters as we seek to leverage exports to create jobs and earn valuable foreign exchange. At the same time, we are clear that increased emphasis must be placed on micro, small and medium scale enterprises here in the Caribbean, which account for the majority of employment and at least 50 percent of GDP in so many of our countries.

The question arises, how can this be done? I am proposing just a few initial steps.

Firstly, we need to provide targeted capacity building support for Caribbean businesses in the form of financial and technical assistance so they can take advantage of the opportunities under this agreement. The clear emphasis has to be on where it matters, on the ground and with a forensic focus on enterprises across the Region. Secondly, information is truly power. Therefore, we have to make information or market intelligence available on a real time basis on the opportunities that exist under this agreement to businesses here in the Caribbean and in the UK. However, just focusing on these two along will only give sub-optimal results.

We also need to stress measures that will assist in long-term relationship building. We need to think creatively about how we facilitate connections and remote collaboration, a new normal in the pandemic. Caribbean Export’s matchmaking and networking efforts have reaped real rewards for businesses, bringing together traders, buyers and investors at trade promotion and exposition events. A virtual investment summit, supported by Caribbean Export, took place earlier this month in Trinidad and Tobago, which saw more than 700 participants representing businesses, investors and site selection experts from close to 70 countries explore investment opportunities in the twin island republic. This is just one example of how we can leverage technology to bring together a broad cross-section of businesses here in the Caribbean and in the United Kingdom to create the basis for enduring trade and investment relationships.

Looking at this week’s Virtual Investment Summit on the UK-CARIFORUM Economic Partnership Agreement, we at the Caribbean Export Development Agency recognise that it represents a major opportunity for Caribbean and UK business. However, the key is breathing life into this agreement by focusing on the private sector and working closely with business so they can take advantage of the possibilities provided by this partnership. To be successful, we are aware that it will require a major effort from all parties. We at the Caribbean Export Development Agency will stay the course and work with all partners to help deliver results for our people in these unprecedented times.

Time is the only currency we have,” says Barbadian innovator Khalil Bryan, “so spend it doing things that matter to you and with people who matter to you.”

Khalil’s musings on the value of time, and how precious it really is, are not just wise words from a young entrepreneur. In fact, Khalil’s commitment to saving time, and subsequently making the most of it, ignited the concept behind his tech start-up company Caribbean Transit Solutions (CTS).

Acutely aware of how much time Barbadian commuters can spend at bus stops and bus stations waiting for often unreliable public transport, Khalil was inspired to think of ways to improve the island’s transit network.

Instead of wasting time wondering when the next bus would arrive, locals and visitors could download a smartphone app which showed them the bus schedule and routes, and how far away the next bus was from their stop.

There are similar transport solutions available in major cities around the world, most notably London, Paris, and New York; but there was nothing like it in the Caribbean when CTS was launched in 2014, which meant the company would be breaking new ground.

Khalil recalls: “My original partner and I started CTS with an idea to provide real-time bus information and allow people to use their time more effectively. Our product was called EasyTransit (now known as BeepBus).

“But we quickly realised that in order to provide real-time bus information we needed an affordable product that tracked vehicles. We searched the market and found a number of options but nothing that was reasonable. So, we started another company called EasyTrak and began offering the tracking system ourselves.

“Over the past four years, we haven’t seen the uptake with BeepBus that we would like, so the business has been driven by the EasyTrak product, and focusing on how we grow that has been what has kept us afloat in difficult times.”

Pivoting from providing real-time bus information to building a GPS tracking platform for vehicles has pushed CTS into full-scale fleet management and data analytics.

The shift was substantial but even more changes were to come in 2015 when Khalil’s original partner decided to leave. A third strand to the business, a taxi ordering app called BeepCab (similar to Uber) was then launched in 2015, but had to be suspended just three years later.

Despite a few speed bumps along the entrepreneurial road, Khalil has continued to focus on his goal of enhancing Caribbean transport, and is now working with a new partner, Veronica Millington, and South African-based Andre Louw.

Like the entrepreneurs who inspire him, such as Richard Branson and Elon Musk, Khalil wants to solve big problems and be a “world-changing entrepreneur”, not just a lifestyle entrepreneur. But he knows that being a pioneer is not easy, so he is thankful for the support he has received from the Caribbean Export Development Agency (CEDA) including a $25,000 (US) Investment Readiness Grant.

“I can say that I’ve made friends, not just colleagues, through Caribbean Export,” Khalil states.

“They were instrumental in bringing on the World Bank and the government of Canada. They introduced us to people in their network and took us to great events throughout the region. They also educated the market in a way that allowed us to thrive and opened the eyes of entrepreneurs and investors.

“Of course, it has not all been perfect. Some markets are better than others at taking up the training opportunities. The programmes have also dropped off, and because of COVID the ones available now are virtual and I don’t think you have the same connection when you do it virtually.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has also forced Khalil and his team of four full-time and three part-time employees to re-examine CTS’s product portfolio yet again.

“We’ve had a number of trying but rewarding internal and external conversations recently,” Khalil states.

“We decided to focus on the things that really do work, and slim down what really doesn’t work, or what isn’t making us money. So, if nothing else, COVID has shown us that we need to diversify geographically and we may also need to diversify, or entrench, some of the industries that we’re working in as well.”

With that in mind, Khalil’s aim over the next 12 months is to continue building a unique repository of transportation data for the Caribbean along with extensive regional expansion.

He believes that there is untapped potential in the Caribbean and is excited that “there are so many opportunities and so many problems to solve.”
Khalil adds: “Where I am challenged is that we’re not moving quickly enough because you can’t rest on your laurels. You continually have to reinvest in your product and your people.

“Time is our most important resource because you don’t get it back. Opportunity does not stay around waiting for you to take it up, and if you don’t grasp it, the opportunity will be gone.”

Over 130 service providers have been certified during the last two years and are better equipped to expand their businesses regionally and internationally. This week eighty-four certified service providers from Barbados, The Bahamas, Belize, Jamaica, St. Lucia, Saint Maarten and Trinidad and Tobago were recognised on Tuesday during the inaugural Services Go Global (SGG) Certification Ceremony.

“The services sector forms a critical pillar as the next frontier in Caribbean business,” said Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) Executive Director Deodat Maharaj during his remarks.

“Caribbean Export is committed to helping our Region diversify our services sector and providing our regional businesses with a better chance to compete, creating jobs and opportunity for our people.”

Mr. Maharaj shared that trade in services was valued at US $13.3 trillion in 2019 (World Trade Organization report). He expanded further, saying that global demand provided an opportunity for non-traditional services such as music, fashion, animation and film, green technology, and professional services to generate jobs and foreign exchange for the region.

During her keynote address, The Hon. Sandra Husbands M.P., Minister in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, shared that, “According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), in 2019 tourism services accounted for approximately 13.9% of the Caribbean’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 15.2% of total employment…. ranking the Caribbean as having the highest dependency on tourism.”

The Minister reiterated the need to diversify the services sector and commended Caribbean Export’s work in this area to support services innovation and build a robust services sector.

The Services Go Global programme was developed, by Caribbean Export in collaboration with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and the European Union, to optimise the export of services from CARIFORUM States. The programme focuses on building the capacity of service providers to capitalise on opportunities under the Economic Partnership (EPA), Caricom Single Market Economy (CSME) and other third-party trade agreements.

The SSG Certification Ceremony was a collaborative effort between Caribbean Export, the Trinidad and Tobago Coalition of Services Industries (TTCSI) and the Caribbean Network of Services Coalition (CNSC).

Hot pepper sauce is a staple in almost every Caribbean kitchen and every island makes it slightly differently.

Some use scotch bonnet peppers, others will only have habanero, while a few will combine the two; some recipes include vinegar while others prefer mustard; and some will add tropical fruit for sweetness, like mango or papaya, and others will call for sugar.

One thing is for sure though, no other condiment holds such sway over almost every West Indian household.

In 2014, Dominica-based entrepreneur Graceson John, started offering his own exotic twist on hot pepper sauce.

Graceson was working in catering and would create spicy sauces to compliment certain dishes. He soon realised how much people loved his unique concoctions, and started bottling his recipes under the brand name ‘Big G’, which is his long-held nickname.

Graceson recalls: “Cooking is a passion of mine so I love being innovative with flavours and switching up a recipe to make it my own. One day I was just working on a base pepper sauce and I decided to experiment with flavours like garlic, roasted garlic, turmeric, and pumpkin.

“I started off in my mother’s kitchen using all her kitchen utensils and even coffee cups. I was looking for a certain consistency. At the beginning I had a lot of failure and threw lots of pepper sauce away because I couldn’t get the right texture.

“In 2013 and 2014 I did some business training with the Dominica Youth Business Trust and I won a cash prize for my business proposal. I used that money to buy my first blender. Then I registered the business, had labels and a logo created, and we grew from there.”

Graceson began selling ‘Big G’s Hot Pepper Sauce’ on a small scale from a relative’s restaurant, but within a year the product had become a regular fixture on almost every supermarket shelf in Dominica. However, he admits that the public were initially hesitant about his many variations on the standard recipe.

“Traditionally people aren’t used to pepper sauce with those flavours and different colours,” Graceson says. “Elderly people were especially sceptical because they think hot pepper sauce should always be red. But the public eventually accepted it and have supported me for the past seven years.

“We have over 20 flavours right now including coconut pepper sauce, cinnamon pepper sauce, ginger, mint and even coffee. We grow all our spices, herbs and seasonings and even some peppers as well, but we also purchase from local farmers in Dominica.”

Graceson’s business has been recognised locally and regionally and he has won five awards so far, including the ‘2015 Caribbean Regional Start-Up Young Entrepreneur’ and ‘Best Quality and Most Innovative Product in Dominica’ in 2016.

Graceson has taken Big G’s growing success in his stride. Production has kept up with demand mainly because of a “mini factory” constructed in his home village of Delices. While setting up the facility he received invaluable technical training from the Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) on Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP).

In addition, Graceson received a €1000 (Euro) grant which was put towards improving the processing area which had been devastated by Hurricane Maria in 2017.

Graceson reveals: “Just before Hurricane Maria I was building the processing area and we had just finished the plumbing and electricals when the storm hit. I remember going inside and everything was gone.

“It was discouraging because I’d put in so much money. But then I just thought about the people who died and those who lost loved ones. I picked myself up and started back over again.”

Currently, many businesses in the region are also struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic, but Graceson says the global health crisis has not been too disruptive for Big G’s because “people still have to eat”.

Instead, he is pushing on with plans to establish a state-of-the-art factory in Dominica which will further enhance his production capabilities, improve standardisation through internal lab facilities, and create employment for at least five people.

He has also expanded the Big G’s product range to include flavoured ketchups, barbecue sauce, salad dressings, and seasoning sauces.

Big G’s is currently exported within the Caribbean region, but Graceson wants to reach out to the US, where he believes his sauces will appeal to the diaspora.

“I am trying to penetrate that market because America has a lot of Caribbean people,” Graceson says. “People in the Caribbean like their pepper sauce and they will support you if they know you are from an island.

“We’re looking at renting a small place in the US to manufacture the sauce but it would be ideal to find a large manufacturer to partner with because then I won’t have to worry about health certificates. Some even already have deals with a distributor, who might also have links with supermarket chains, and once Big G’s is in one store it could be seen across every state in America.”

Graceson adds: “Big G’s is my baby and eventually I want it to be all over the world. My passion and drive to succeed is what keeps me going. I want to develop my brand into something that makes me proud, so when I look back in 40 years’ time I can say, ‘yes, I did that’”.

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Audley Shaw has announced millions of dollars in investments in the agricultural sector.

Among them is a US$95-million investment to create a certified organic high-tech greenhouse farm in Goshen, St. Elizabeth, “which will be the largest, by far, in the region”, he said.

He informed that the joint-venture project “will be undertaken on a 200-acre property over a seven-year period, and will specialise in Heritage and Heirloom produce, TOV tomatoes, bell peppers, bush beans, garlic, strawberries, cucumbers, sweet corn, watermelon, and other assortments of fresh produce”.

The Minister was addressing the opening day of the virtual Caribbean AGTECH Investment Summit 2021 (CATIS 2021 on Tuesday (October 5).

He further cited the US$6-million JFVL Agriculture Project, which will deliver fresh fruits and vegetables for the domestic market, including satisfying demand from the tourism sector.

The joint venture equity investment is centred on the establishment of a state-of-the-art fully integrated supply chain operation.

“The project involves the production, warehousing, cold storage, and multi-channel distribution of fresh produce on the domestic market,” the Minister said.

JFVL’s business model involves the engagement of contract farmers to farm a 600-acre property in Hill Run, St. Catherine, under the company’s direct management, Mr. Shaw said, noting that a feasibility study on the project has been completed.

In addition, the Minard Estate Farm in Brown’s Town, St. Ann, will be expanded under a public-private partnership to increase live animals, beef production, semen, and embryo production, and a 500-acre Agro Park will be built in St. Thomas, under joint-venture equity.

“It (agro park) will be a leading global development site for climate-smart agriculture production, resulting in import replacement of highly valued crops for distribution and export,” the Minister said.

The virtual Caribbean AGTECH Investment Summit was organised by the Caribbean Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (CAIPA), in collaboration with the Caribbean Export Development Agency and its partner, the Caribbean Agribusiness Association (CABA).

The three-day Summit was aimed at promoting the Caribbean as a destination for investment in high-tech agribusiness ventures, with a focus on the production of crops, meat, and seafood, as well as value-added products from the region using smart technologies.

Written by: Garfield L. Angus and originally published by the Jamaica Information Service

The Caribbean Export Development Agency and the Government of Guyana have agreed to deepen collaboration in investment promotion, export development and the services sector.

These priority areas of focus for Guyana’s development were the topic of discussion when Executive Director Deodat Maharaj met H.E Dr. Irfaan Ali, President of Guyana last Friday, October 8, 2021.

Mr. Maharaj said, “It was good to meet with H.E Mohamed Irfaan Ali, President of Guyana and agree on the focused areas of our support. The Guyana- Caribbean Export partnership will emphasise the creation of jobs and opportunities as the Agency continues to help to advance a transformational agenda.”

A strong champion of the Agency’s work, President Ali last week delivered the keynote address at the recently concluded Caribbean Agtech Investment Summit. Here President Ali stressed the imperative of the agricultural sector and attracting investment as the Region seeks to build much-needed food security. The Agency also supported Guyana’s first-ever Virtual Investment Forum headlined by President Ali on March 23, 2021. That initiative saw close to 567 participants coming from 41 countries.

Looking ahead, Caribbean Export is committed to further deepening its collaboration and partnership with Guyana to create jobs and opportunities.

As Executive Director Deodat Maharaj continues the Agency’s stakeholder engagement mission in Guyana, he met with The Honourable Hugh Hilton Todd, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

During yesterday’s discussions, Mr. Maharaj expressed Caribbean Export’s keen commitment to support Guyana in export promotion, steering investments to the country, and supporting the development of the services sector.

The discussions were welcomed by both parties who agreed on the vital importance of creating jobs and opportunities for the people of Guyana.

Mr. Maharaj’s engagement has taken place during the Week of Agriculture, when Caribbean Export has hosted the region’s first-ever summit focused on attracting agricultural technology in to the region Caribbean AgTech Investment Summit. The event welcomed a feature address from the President of Guyana Dr Irfaan Ali.

In addition, the Agency will be launching a Call for Proposals which will enable firms to apply for a grant of up to 30,000 euros.

On October 4, 2021, Executive Director of Caribbean Export, Deodat Maharaj, met with Dr Peter Ramsaroop, CEO, GoInvest, to discuss the programmes and initiatives the Agency is implementing to provide targeted support to Guyana.

During the discussions, Mr. Maharaj reaffirmed Caribbean Export’s commitment to support private sector development as the Agency seeks to fast-track recovery, facilitate job creation and opportunities for the people of Guyana.

“Caribbean Export is happy to meet and agree with GoInvest on our practical, concrete support to help provide jobs and opportunity for Guyana at a time of incredible opportunity and transformation for the country.” remarked the Executive Director.

Caribbean Export will continue to support micro, small and medium scale enterprises in Guyana through our grants and capacity building programmes helping them to access key markets to create jobs and earn foreign exchange. It was also agreed that Caribbean Export will provide support to Guyana as it seeks to upscale its efforts at nearshoring.

Mr. Maharaj will be engaging with other stakeholders, in Guyana, over the coming week as the Agency continues to be on the ground listening and engaging with its stakeholders and partners.