UAE, Singapore, India now among Guyana’s top export destinations – Todd

While Guyana’s trade with the ABC countries and the European Union (EU) has grown exponentially, so too has its trade with non-traditional markets and it was revealed on Friday in the National Assembly that the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Singapore and India are now among Guyana’s top export destinations.

During day one of the 2025 budget debates, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hugh Todd, revealed the statistics on Guyana’s trade with other countries outside of the region.
He highlighted that trade with the United States (US) has expanded by US$6.2 billion. So too has trade with other countries in the popularly known ABCE block.

“Trade without our major extra-regional partners increased significantly. Exports to the United States and Canada expanded by US$6.2 billion and US$385 million, respectively. The growth of our exports to the United Kingdom (UK) and the European Union has also been exponential, increasing by US$747 million and US$2.2 billion during the period,” he disclosed.

Todd also hailed the work done to remove market access barriers from both intra and extra regional markets. This has helped Guyana to secure non-traditional markets, with some of them such as India and the UAE, now considered top export markets for Guyana.

“This trend is reflected in our extra-regional, which has risen by US$2.8 billion since 2020. Additionally, Mr Speaker, exports to non-traditional markets have increased substantially. The UAE, Singapore and India are now ranked among Guyana’s top export destinations,” the Foreign Minister said.

Guyana’s ties with India have grown particularly strong in the last few years, culminating in a visit from India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year.

On the national front, Guyana has benefitted enormously from India’s expertise with human capital training through scholarships, military exchange programmes, concessional loans and grants, it’s first international Stadium, investments from the Indian Export Import (EXIM) Bank, cultural exchanges, support in the medical field, among others.

India, the world’s third-largest oil consumer and importer, as well the one of the biggest oil refiners, has also been looking to Guyana to diversify its crude sources. This is with Guyana importing nearly 85 per cent to 90 per cent of its crude oil.

India had already bought some US$149 million of Guyana’s crude between 2021 and 2022 and had been seeking a multi-year deal.

As a result, the Cabinet in New Delhi, back in January 2024, had approved the signing of a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Guyana. As a result of this MOU, India is expected to partner with Guyana in critical areas in the oil and gas sector, including refining crude oil.

Guyana has also enjoyed strengthened ties with UAE and Singapore. In the case of the former, President Dr Irfaan Ali has had bilateral meetings with his UAE counterpart Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed.

There was as much as US$826 million in bilateral trade of non-oil goods between the UAE and Guyana in 2022, as the two partners also agreed to strengthen their bilateral relationship in a number of areas.

President Ali had led bilateral discussions with the UAE Foreign Minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and his delegation at State House in 2023. And in 2021, President Ali and Minister of State for International Cooperation, Reem Al Hashimy inked an MOU to advance technical assistance and cooperation.

Meanwhile, President Ali has met with senior leaders in Singapore and the two countries have agreed to strengthen their collaboration on a number of issues.

For instance, it was announced in October 2024 that Guyana and Singapore had committed to deepening their cooperation, with President Ali discussing sustainable urban development models with Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

The two leaders focused on four key areas that highlight the shared priorities and leadership of both nations in economic development and global sustainability – Carbon Markets, Low Carbon Development, Biodiversity and Private Sector Development.

President Ali and Prime Minister Wong further explored opportunities for cooperation on low-carbon development, a major theme of Guyana’s engagement at the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).

And in July 2024, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo had disclosed that the Government was looking to tap into the compliance market-based in Singapore to sell Guyana’s certified carbon credits to international airlines.

Guyana and Singapore are already collaborating in the oil and gas sector, with Guyana’s Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessels being manufactured in the Southeastern Asian country and involving many Singaporean companies in the supply chain.