–  by Nakasia Logan

Amid rising global food prices and shifting market demand, Guyana is pursuing new investments and regional partnerships to boost local production and reduce imports.

This is according to the Head of the Guyana Office for Investment, Dr. Peter Ramsaroop.

Dr Ramsaroop says Guyana is aggressively tackling regional trade barriers as it positions itself to become a major agro-processing hub in the Caribbean.

His remarks came in response to questions about challenges Guyanese products face within the region, following updates on the upcoming Agro-Fest activities.

Dr. Ramsaroop noted that global increases in the cost of living have shifted market demands, creating greater opportunities for locally produced goods.

“We are finding a lot more demand from the Region because the cost of living has gone up across the world no doubt about it so importing foods in Guyana we can tell you that we are in negation with del monte wants to come in and plant pineapples and if we can get that planted and we can get our pineapple in a can now why would I import that pineapple it would be cheaper from Guyana going in to the region,” he said.

He noted that engaging in discussions with multinational companies such as Del Monte could significantly reduce imports while boosting export.

“It is futuristic thinking like that that is going to make a difference with the COTED problems or any barriers. We’re going into refined sugars the president made a deal in Belize between Belize in Guyana and you know that’s a major step in the right direction and there is some other initiative out there the fertiliser plant that we are going to do with the gas to energy,” he further explained.

Dr. Ramsaroop noted that rising global food prices and the increased cost of living worldwide have created greater regional demand for competitively priced agricultural products, and Guyana is positioning itself to meet that demand while continuing efforts to dismantle trade barriers across the region.