Find Industry and Manufacturing expertise in Guyana

Guyana’s manufacturing industry contributes about 10% towards the country’s GDP and employs approximately 12% of the population (2010). Guyana is rated 115 out of 185 countries by the World Bank for ease of doing business, a ranking based on how conducive the regulatory environment is to the opening and operation of a local firm.

Traditionally, the manufacturing sector has been dedicated to the processing of traditional agricultural products, forest products, minerals, basic consumer items, food and beverages, and pharmaceuticals for local consumption. While these traditional manufacturing activities remain important, there is a growing interest in the country to expand value-added, export-oriented manufacturing industries such as garments and apparel, agro industry products, ceramics and construction materials. Most manufacturing in Guyana comes from the processing of agricultural products, including sugar, rice, timber, and minerals such as bauxite, gold and diamonds.

In 1989 the government introduced an economic recovery programme which made way for the privatisation of smaller manufacturing companies. Some of the first companies to be privatised were producers of food and beverages such as Demerara Distillers Limited, which produces rum among other alcoholic beverages. This was a deviation from the traditional business structure where companies were co-owned by the government, and small manufacturers of textiles, ceramics and pharmaceuticals were also all produced in state-owned factories. The company was relatively successful under state ownership, having become the world’s largest producer of rum after Bacardi and the leading supplier of bulk rum (sold under various brand names) to Britain, according to the Financial Times. The government owned the majority of the company until 1988, when Demerara Distillers issued 12 million new shares and diluted government ownership to about 47%. At first, the government did not appear ready to completely relinquish its hold on the rum producer, however, as it blocked the company’s 1990 effort to issue more shares.

The World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report 2012–13 give Guyana on overall rating of 71 out of 144 countries included in the report. The country was given a value of 3.5 out of 7.0 for product process sophistication, with 7.0 representing a country in which the world’s best and most efficient process technology prevails. This placed it below the world mean of 3.9.

The Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association Ltd (GMSA), formed in 1963, is Guyana’s main body regarding the country’s manufacturing sector. The association has strong ties with the government and Guyana’s private sector organisations. The GMSA also services international and regional organisations and the country’s growing manufacturing services sub-sector.