As Guyanese advance in the area of entrepreneurship, more and more businesses are being formed to ensure the sustainability and the development of Guyana ‘s economy.

It is against this backdrop that the Black Entrepreneurs Association (BEP) was established in 2020 with the aim to bring financial support to black businesses and entities across the country.

In an interview with the Pepperpot Magazine, the group’s spokesperson Melissa Varswyk noted that the group is working in tandem with Afro-Guyanese entities both to develop each other’s business as well as provide services for each other that would be of benefit to all.

Chairman of the group Rowen Willabus added that black ancestry ensured that land was purchased to ensure support for businesses was sustained.

“ Since then we have also been a membership of close to 300 [persons] and we have also had a branch established in the United Kingdom and we are currently exploring branches in the United States as well as Africa, so that is currently in progress. We had a group of legislators from the United States who visited for the Emancipation Season and helped us with our launching and we had our very first gathering. Due to the pandemic, it was difficult to have any gathering , but that was the very first time they came together publicly as an association,” Varswyk told this publication.

It was also mentioned that one of the biggest achievements is the fact that organisations can collaborate and form networks which help in building the organisation.
She added that amidst the challenges faced, entrepreneurs are now owning properties. She pointed to the fact that there are serious challenges in the real estates market.

Chairman Willabus noted that working relationships have been established between the Government of Guyana and the United States.
Melissa further made mention of the fact that the Association is making sure that the businesses that they are working with are business investment compliant and ready.

Training programmes
During the interview, the Association reported that they were training programmes with the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) to ensure compliance of registration for businesses with the Association.

There were also mental health and counselling sessions for persons who were coping with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Willabus pointed out that the BEA has a board of directors so there is a wider group that is considered the engine of the Black Entrepreneurs Association (BEA), which are various sections including ICT, health etc.

“It isn’t an organisation that caters for neither big nor small, and to my mind is a good thing, because a big brother big sister relationship is created, where we are looking out for each other. Therefore there is a family that can be relied upon, should someone require advice,” Willabus pointed out during his interview.

Willabus vehemently drove home the point that the BEA’s consideration for “black” does not mean Anti-Indian, or any other race. “We need the other races as well to work cohesively with us,” he said.

The BEA teaming together with the Institute of Private Enterprise Development (IPED), a local lending agency to fund projects that are run by the Association. Persons wishing to become actively involved in the organisation can contact the organisation through its website and be given a form to fill. This is according to Willabus.

Moreover, Willabus noted that every member must have a business that is registered and that business owners must be compliant with the business registration procedures of this country.
Plans for the future

“We are looking to regionally to find opportunities. We are currently finishing up on our 2022 work plan. We have created a database. Through our database, we are able to determine any irregularities and clichés as it pertains to business documentation and procedures,” Willabus said.

As a growing organisation, there are plans to have a mentorship programme for young entrepreneurs who will graduate from secondary schools, while at the same time, aiming to expand globally.