— highlights massive industrial, economic expansion taking shape among Berbice, Roraima
—as Guyana, Brazil look to build greater regional connection

PRESIDENT Dr Irfaan Ali has reaffirmed that Guyana’s rapid industrial and infrastructural expansion is strategically positioning the nation as a central player in South America’s emerging regional integration plan.
Delivering the feature address at the Berbice Development Summit Agenda held at the Kingston Marriott on Tuesday, President Ali said that the coastal regions of Mahaica-Berbice (Region Five) and East Berbice-Corentyne (Region Six) are being transformed into major economic hubs, underpinning Guyana’s rise as a gateway for continental trade and investment.
“This summit is not a talk shop. It is not another meeting. It is a movement forward. It is building momentum. It’s rallying every stakeholder it’s building partnership. It’s expanding network, and it’s creating the foundational pillars for development. When we talk about the development opportunities ahead of us, we have to also understand the regional context of these opportunities,” the President noted.
“We are looking at the infrastructure integration plan for South America. And if you look carefully at that plan, Guyana is really the centrepiece of that infrastructure plan.”
STRATEGIC INFRASTRUCTURE PUSH
Among the flagship projects driving this transformation are the establishment of a deep-water port, the new high-span Berbice River Bridge, and the Corentyne River Bridge, which will link Guyana and Suriname. Currently, the two countries are connected by a ferry service, but the President said the new bridge will drastically enhance cross-border movement and commerce.
Additionally, several four-lane highways are planned to connect the coastal and hinterland regions, including the construction of a municipal airport at Rose Hall, aimed at strengthening logistics and mobility within Berbice and beyond.
“This infrastructure plan that I’ve outlined here, we are pursuing to have it all completed within five years and it will get done,” President Ali assured.
With Berbice and Brazil’s Roraima region identified as key growth corridors, the Head of State said Guyana is intensifying efforts to collaborate with its southern neighbour to expand trade, infrastructure and industrial capacity.
“We want to ensure that our investment leads to Guyana becoming the world’s hottest destination for agro-processing and food production. We want to create the most competitive destination for investment and innovation,” President Ali declared.
He added that Guyana’s development agenda is grounded in regional prosperity, not insular nationalism.
“We are not a Guyana only concerned about Guyanese. We are a Guyana deeply rooted in regional prosperity. Whatever we do must lead to regional integration and expansion of an economic zone that positions us at the centre of coming together,” he said.
According to the government’s 2025 PPP/C Manifesto, Berbice is being earmarked as a future industrial capital, leveraging its strategic location and natural gas reserves.
Plans are in motion to attract private investment in oil refining, alumina processing, fertiliser production, and petrochemical manufacturing.
Supporting this vision, the government will construct a second natural gas pipeline in Berbice — mirroring ExxonMobil’s pipeline from the Liza field to Wales, West Bank Demerara. That project currently fuels the Gas-to-Energy initiative, supplying up to 125 million standard cubic feet of gas daily for domestic power generation and natural gas liquids (NGLs) extraction.
The upcoming Berbice pipeline will similarly anchor the development of a new industrial park, signalling what President Ali described as “the next phase of Guyana’s regional economic expansion.”