Sabga tells GCCI dinner guests…
PIONEERING Caribbean businessman, Mr. Anthony Sabga said, Tuesday night, that business leaders in Guyana must “run with the ball and make things happen” as the Government has already provided the enabling environment, not unlike what was done in Singapore and his native Trinidad and Tobago. “It is quite possible. Go and make it happen,” the Chairman Emeritus of Ansa McAL Group of Companies urged at the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) annual awards and presentation dinner at Guyana Pegasus Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown.

Among those in attendance were distinguished members of the local business community and the Diplomatic Corps, Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, performing duties of the office of President and Mrs. Yvonne Hinds.

Quote:“The development of a business partnership between Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago will be of mutual benefit to both countries. Our two countries have much more in common and could be the future for CARICOM nations…You also have a sleeping giant in the number of talented and experienced citizens of Guyana who are living abroad. They provide a valuable source of foreign exchange through their remittances back home. Another aspect is to provide a safe and welcoming environment so that some of these citizens abroad are encouraged to return home and contribute physically to Guyana’s development with their acquired foreign expertise.” – Mr. Anthony Sabga

Eighty-seven-year old Sabga said, last month, he had the pleasure of hosting President Bharrat Jagdeo at an Ansa McCall Group of Companies luncheon in Trinidad and he recalled: “President Jagdeo gave a brilliant account of the great strides that Guyana has made.
“He highlighted the deepening relationship between Guyana and Brazil and its membership in the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), as well as the 80,000 house lots provided and the 10,000 homes being built annually.
“This is a great achievement,” the Trinidadian agreed.
He said Guyana must, therefore, be viewed as an exciting country in this hemisphere and there is no doubt that the future success of CARICOM will depend on the development and greater utilisation of Guyana’s natural resources.
“But you, the leaders of diverse sectors, have to make the growth happen. It is your responsibility to successfully generate your country’s true growth potential,” Sabga reiterated.
Identifying four factors that must be considered for the achievement, he said: “Guyana has an abundance of natural resources. Guyana has a tremendous foundation and economic structure that can be built upon. Current business and other leaders in Guyana have shown their ability to make things happen. There are thousands of Guyanese who are resident abroad.”

Sabga said the natural resources of Guyana are almost unlimited and available for tremendous development. But he maintained that what is required is the leadership, in the various economic and social sectors, to effectively direct, manage and develop the resources.

“They only need to deepen their resolve and their actions to make it happen,” he offered.
Sabga continued: “Guyana has certainly progressed over the past 10 years. How can this growth be capitalised on? Today, there is nothing that cannot be learned over the Internet. Therefore, you have to learn from your own mistakes and experiences.”

SINGAPORE
Citing an example, he said the South Asian country of Singapore had little or no natural resources and was mainly a transhipment port for countries in Asia, when the then Prime Minister, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew took the initiative and visited some of the world’s largest corporations, inviting them to go to his country and open branches, offering them incentives of duty free concessions and tax exemptions in order to create jobs for Singaporeans.

“The result of this is that Singapore is one of the world’s leading financial sectors and high tech industrial nations,” Sabga said.

According to him, until 50 years ago, Trinidad was regarded as a cottage industry but, with the creation of pioneering aid legislation, it was able to create large industrial development and the present financial sector.

“All this was created by the initiative of the Government assisting to build a structure and it is for the people, the private sector to develop the resources that are required,” he advised.

Sabga observed that Guyana has started on the journey to global interaction that has to be explored with more intensity. He said the business leaders here and other businessmen have demonstrated their expertise and started business activities.

“But more must be done,” Sabga said.

“The development of a business partnership between Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago will be of mutual benefit to both countries. Our two countries have much more in common and could be the future for CARICOM nations,” he posited, disclosing that members of the Ansa Mcal Group were in Guyana seeking opportunities for joint partnerships and development.

“You also have a sleeping giant in the number of talented and experienced citizens of Guyana who are living abroad. They provide a valuable source of foreign exchange through their remittances back home. Another aspect is to provide a safe and welcoming environment so that some of these citizens abroad are encouraged to return home and contribute physically to Guyana’s development with their acquired foreign expertise,” he told his audience.

Sabga said the welcoming environment will also encourage more overseas investors and facilitate the greater expansion of Guyana’s potential.

“I have seen Guyanese in England, Canada and the United States, who could be encouraged to return home but some inducement and personal tax relief will have to be provided,” he contended.

Sabga’s speech was followed by the GCCI awards through which a number of entities were recognised for their outstanding achievements during 2010.