AS the petroleum sector evolves, the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) is calling on businesses to take advantage of the business opportunities in the lead up to first oil.

At the same time, the country’s oldest business body is strengthening its approach to its mandate, including the adoption of a collaborative approach to the development of the business sector in partnership with the government. In March, a new executive body was installed at the GCCI and new President, Deodat Indar spoke to the media on Thursday at the new executive’s first press briefing at the chamber’s base on Waterloo Street.

Indar said that the country’s economy is expected to develop as oil and gas production nears. He said that there are opportunities for the local business sector to expand with the advent of petroleum production. However he noted that while a few businesses are paying ken interest in the development, a majority are not in tuned. “We believe our Guyanese businesses are asleep”, he said, noting that some are not taking advantage of the opportunities that are available.

Indar spoke of the offer by American oil giant ExxonMobil in which businesses can register to partner with the firm in the development of their respective businesses. “If you have a business, register it with Exxon , you need to get into the room and take steps to do so”, Indar said.

He said that the GCCI is “fighting“ to ensure all Guyanese benefit from the petroleum sector, as he called on the business community to be more involved. “We are not seeing that enthusiasm and proactive and we are saying it should be done and done so quickly”, Indar said. “We have a young leadership“, Indar noted as he spoke of the chamber’s plans.

He said that the GCCI has been engaging several government ministries since the new executive assumed office in March. The chamber’s new executive has since engaged the Minister of Finance, Winston Jordon; Minister of Public Health, Volda Lawrence; Minister of Business, Dominic Gaskin, and Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman.

Meanwhile, this week the GCCI engaged Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson and a team from the ministry. The two bodies discussed at length several projects which are being undertaking by the Ministry, while the chamber expressed several areas of concerns, including the awarding of contracts to entities which are already burdened by existing contracts.

The objective of the meeting was for the Minister to inform the membership of the Ministry’s Infrastructural Development Plan, and to discuss ways in which the private sector in Guyana might align itself and support the Ministry’s plan for development. According to the GCCI, Minister Patterson delivered an informative and engaging presentation on the Ministry’s Infrastructural Development Plan which covered a number of areas for development.

These included the pedestrian overpasses in which contracts were awarded for the construction of six (6) pedestrian overpasses on the East Bank of Demerara at Houston, the Demerara Harbour Bridge(DHB), Eccles, Providence and Greater Diamond. The project is fully funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). A new bridge across the Demerara River, upriver from the existing DHB was also discussed and Patterson informed the membership that based on feasibility studies being conducted, there are plans for the construction of a USD $150m bridge from Houston, EBD to Versailles, WBD. The Minister noted that an Expression of Interest for the construction of the bridge will be sent out in July. Traffic reduction in Georgetown, rehabilitation of Georgetown Sea Defense Area as well as ongoing expansion works at Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CIJA) and the energy sector, mainly natural gas production were among the key areas which the ministry discussed with the GCCI.