–Chinese leader tells Guyanese

By Shaquan Gill in China
IF any country wants to develop, it must first focus on the creation of strong infrastructure, both physically and technologically, according to international business tycoon, Li Dongsheng.
Dongsheng is currently the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the TCL Technology Group Corporation (formerly known as TCL Corporation), as well as a Deputy of the National People’s Congress (NPC).

He gave this recommendation when specifically asked about Guyana’s development at a recent press briefing with foreign journalists.

“My suggestion is that, from the development process of China, if a country wants to develop fast, the prerequisite is the infrastructure. This means you should have the very improved infrastructure system and then its industries can move ahead,” Dongsheng pointed out.

Moreover, the NPC deputy highlighted that after the digital and physical infrastructure networks have been created, the country must ensure that there is a significant development of its human resources.

“After putting all the infrastructure in place, the talents are also very important. You need people to work in order to get the processes going…so the technicians, [and] the leaders to implement all the projects. So, two things – one is infrastructure first, and then the talent cultivation,” he posited.

Since its being elected to office in August 2020, the Dr. Irfaan Ali-led People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has directed significant resources to the infrastructural transformation and modernisation of Guyana, in what was deemed the “build-out.”

Several major road networks have been completed and are currently being constructed to open up new lands for economic and industrial expansion.

Further, the recently approved gas-to-energy project is another critical piece of infrastructure that aims to reduce the cost of electricity by 50 per cent, as well as to reduce the price of cooking gas on the domestic market.

To build the capacity of its digital infrastructure, Guyana recently signed an agreement with a German company for the establishment of a one-card system, which aims to digitise the records and information of individuals on one document, for smoother and simpler transactions.

In the areas of talent cultivation and human resource development, the Government of Guyana has also provided more than 9,000 tertiary-level scholarships to Guyanese to build their academic and technical capacities.

Already, through the Ministry of Labour’s Board of Industrial Training (BIT), more than 7,000 persons have been trained from 2020 to date in the areas of heavy-duty operation, electrical engineering, welding and fabrication, agricultural machinery operation, and many others.