WITH massive expansion expected in the new year in Guyana’s tourism sector, Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Susan Rodrigues, has signalled that the government will collaborate with stakeholders in the entertainment and promotion industry.

Rodrigues made this known on Monday during a stakeholder engagement session with entertainers and promoters, held at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre.

During the engagement, the minister said the tourism sector is on the brink of significant transformation, noting that expansion plans for 2026 will require stronger partnerships across the industry, including with entertainers and event promoters.

“Guyana’s tourism sector will see massive expansion in 2026… so we’re going to enter a period of aggressive expansion for 2026 and it is one that will include collaboration for all of the stakeholders in the tourism and hospitality sector and I heard a lot of entertainers say sometimes the tourism and hospitality sector forgets about us, that we’re a major stakeholder in the tourism landscape of our country,” she noted.

Rodrigues said the administration recognises that the creative sector is also essential to building a strong and attractive tourism product.

As part of the government’s long-term plan, Rodrigues reaffirmed commitments made ahead of this year’s elections to formalise an annual national calendar of events. “Our vision for 2026-2030… one of the commitments we made going into the elections this year is that we will confirm a calendar of events – an annual calendar of events going forward.

She noted that while this helps with predictability, it also ensures that travellers are given enough notice for them to be able to organise themselves, look at the calendar and decide what times of the year they would like to visit.

Against this backdrop, Rodrigues said that in building out such a calendar of events, the government intends to support promoters while ensuring their activities complement the national tourism strategy.

“Most of you in this room plan your own independent events, and we always want to encourage the private sector to plan their events, but we want you to be successful while you’re doing it and we want to give you the support with your events as well, and it’s a great filler for our national calendar as well,” she said.

To this end, the minister assured stakeholders that structured collaboration will remain a priority as Guyana prepares for a period of unprecedented tourism growth and further noted that the government will continue to support the local creative sector.