–event set for July 22 to 24

GUYANA’S International Building Expo 2022 was, on Wednesday, launched after not being held for some seven years.

The event, according to authorities, is expected to bring all stakeholders in the housing and construction sector together.

The expo was launched at the Pegasus Hotel under the theme, “A New frontier for Building a One Guyana” and is expected to be held from July 22 to July 24 at the Guyana National Stadium.

President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, said that the expo has evolved from when it was first thought of and has been a springboard for many housing developments and businesses in the country.

The President further added that the Building Expo is not only about housing, but is also designed to showcase the development trajectory of the government from a construction perspective.

The President said: “The Building Expo is designed to showcase the development trajectory of the government from a construction perspective, so that persons in the private sector, in the banking sector, in the commercial sector could align their own vision and align their own business model with the direction which the government is going.”

According to Chief Executive Officer at the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA) Sherwyn Greaves, it will be the country’s first Building Expo in over seven years and will provide opportunities for businesses and individuals to showcase their products and services.

Chairman of the Private Sector Commission, Paul Cheong, said that the private sector welcomes this event as both local and international businesses along with developers and prospective homeowners will be able to benefit immensely.

Cheong said: “We don’t underestimate the value of the contribution that this makes to our country and economy by no means, as it does not only provide much needed housing solutions but it also creates thousands of direct and indirect jobs.”

He further added that the housing and construction sectors will continue to grow at a fast rate as the economy continues to accelerate by “geometric proportions.”

To this end, he mentioned that the PSC sees the event as one that will bring all players into a single space and allow sellers, buyers and builders to meet and interact and even transform some dreams into a reality.

Meanwhile, Minister within the Ministry of Housing and Water, Susan Rodrigues, during the launch, said that the expo will give Guyanese, visitors and stakeholders, an opportunity to also see how the government has transformed the housing sector and how they have been able to accomplish quite a lot in such a short space of time.

Rodrigues said: “We are pleased to have this international building expo, so that we can exhibit the work that we have done so far and also to perhaps set out the map or the framework of what Guyana will look like in the very near future.”

To this end, while Minister of Housing and Water, Collin Croal, delivered brief remarks at the launching, he indicated that the Building Expo is the brain child of President, Dr. Irfaan Ali and was brought to life some years ago when the President served as Housing Minister.

Croal said that Ali’s vision was ahead of time, but it was a necessary intervention to catalyse growth and development in the housing sector. As such, the minister told those gathered that it was a missed opportunity when the event was not hosted during the 2015 to 2020 period.

The Housing Minister added that the expo is expected to be a hub around which conversations about the constraints within the housing sector and even the potential for sustainable development could take place.

The government, Croal said, has provided an environment that is investor friendly and incentive-rich.

It was noted that interested businesses should register early for the expo and could do so by visiting the expo’s website at www.buildingexpogy.com.