See full statement from the Guyana Youth Entrepreneurship Chamber:
The Guyana Youth Entrepreneurship Chamber welcomes the establishment of the Guyana Development Bank, announced by His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali.
Access to available and affordable capital is a pillar of a thriving private sector community, particularly for small businesses in Guyana. A lack of collateral, credit history, or the formal documentation has long been a barrier to accessing capital, which has stifled a myriad of relevant and necessary ideas needed to continue Guyana’s development. GYEC believes that the Guyana Development Bank is a new window of opportunity that can confront this reality.
Offering zero interest, zero collateral loans of up to GYD $3 million to micro and small businesses is unprecedented not just in Guyana, but across the Caribbean, the Western Hemisphere, and many corners of the international system. The Bank ushers in a new generation of young companies who will now be eligible for financing that was previously out of reach. Youth entrepreneurs, women-led businesses, persons living with disabilities, and others who have operated at the margins of the formal economy now have a legitimate pathway to capitalisation. The Bank’s support for consortium arrangements further extends that reach, enabling businesses to collaborate and access opportunities collectively.
Now, with financial access at our fingertips, it is on us, the business community, and the entire economic ecosystem to be in a state of readiness. Businesses that prioritize ‘readiness’ to ensure they are more than eligible but genuinely bankable will be best served. This includes sound financial management, clear business documentation, and the operational discipline to convert financing into sustainable growth. That is where GYEC directs its energy.
Founding President of the Guyana Youth Entrepreneurship Chamber, Dr. Rosh Khan, said in an invited comment: “I commend the Government of Guyana’s proactivity and vision to making financing available and affordable. Our mandate at GYEC is to now ensure that our members are ready for it. Being eligible for this loan is only the beginning. The real work is becoming bankable, building the business fundamentals, the financial discipline, and the documentation that turns borrowed capital into lasting enterprise. GYEC sees the Bank not just as a financial mechanism but as a call to action. A call to Guyana’s young entrepreneurs to seize this opportunity and make it count. At GYEC, we will mobilise our members, walk them through financial literacy, business management, and everything they need to walk into that bank and walk out with a future.”
GYEC will focus its programmes on financial literacy, business planning, compliance, and management capacity in the period ahead. We encourage all eligible entrepreneurs to begin that preparation now.
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