–U.S. Under Secretary for Economic Affairs says; points to Guyana’s potential to be one of the most prosperous economies in the Western Hemisphere
–highlights potential for partnerships with Silicon Valley companies

THE United States of America and Guyana have agreed to pursue technical high-level talks and may establish a joint working group aimed at accelerating private investment across several key sectors.
This was according to United States Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, Jacob Helberg, during a press conference, on Wednesday.
Helberg said that mining, particularly bauxite expansion and investments in technology, were among key priority areas discussed with President, Dr. Irfaan Ali.
“Right now, in the US, we are in the midst of making decisions about choosing who our trading partners are going to be for the next 20- 30 years. We are currently recalibrating our trading relationships and making very affirmative, deliberate decisions on who our most trusted partners are going to be, and we’re very excited to come here and really see first-hand for ourselves the breadth of opportunity that there is in Guyana,” he told reporters.
Discussions explored surveying land where large amounts of new reserves, or many types of other minerals are believed to be located.
Ultimately, the goal is to make Guyana a hub for foreign investments.

He stressed that the two countries will now look at establishing a concrete working group to support further technical discussions.
“We’re going to have technical conversations following today’s meeting. We may explore the establishment of a working group to ensure a certain level of cadence and follow-through,” the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs said.
He stressed that Washington and Georgetown were in “perfect alignment” on the overarching objective using private investment as the main engine to transform Guyana’s economy.
“Ultimately, there was perfect alignment on the goal, which was we want to accelerate private investment and really make Guyana one of the most prosperous economies in the western hemisphere, which it really has the potential to be,” he said.
AI REVOLUTION AND TECHNOLOGY PARTNERSHIP
Helberg framed the visit against what he called an “incredibly transformative time” in the global technology sector, driven by advances in artificial intelligence (AI).

He said President Ali was “totally committed” to ensuring Guyana plays an important part in that technological revolution, and indicated that Washington is looking at ways to mobilise private capital into technology-focused investments, including data centres and digital infrastructure.
Helberg stressed that there is great potential for technology to tailwind economic growth.
“You know, policymakers have a choice in how they approach encouraging economic growth. You can either try to undertake projects in house, through government funded projects, or you can use policy levers to create the right environment and the right business climate that will actually catalyse the private sector making those investments.
On agriculture and food security, Helberg said he saw scope for new bilateral initiatives, noting President Ali’s push to promote entrepreneurship.
“We think that there is a lot of room that can be explored to actually materialise those opportunities and make Guyana potentially an incredible place for Silicon Valley companies to come test new technologies and potentially set up shop here,” he said, adding: “We think that the momentum is there, and we think that the leadership of both of our nations are really inclined to take this bilateral partnership to the next level that we haven’t seen before.”