By Sherrica Thompson

Staff Writer

#Guyana, February 24, 2023 – As Guyana continues its quest to grow its economy, a British Chamber of Commerce (BritCham) has been created to strengthen existing mutually beneficial relationships and facilitate commercial business opportunities between the CARICOM member state and the United Kingdom (UK).

The formal creation of BritCham was announced by a Guyanese businessman and Chairperson of the BritCham Guyana Steering Group, Faizal Khan, at the recently held 2023 International Energy Conference in Guyana.

“BritCham Guyana has been a brainchild and an ambition for many people for a number of years.  There’s been a lot of brainstorming around it for quite a while.   And today, we’re very happy to announce that the entity is established,” he said.

According to a release from BritCham, the chamber will also act as a support for other chambers of commerce that exist in the countries they operate in.  BritCham Guyana will be officially launched in London, England, and Aberdeen, Scotland.

Currently, BritCham Guyana has close to 30 companies already registered, with some 50 verbal commitments.

Guyana is said to be the UK’s largest trade partner in the Caribbean.  In 2021, the country accounted for 21.6 per cent of all the UK’s trade with the Caribbean.

The move to establish the new business chamber comes on the heels of several partnerships between Guyana and the UK.  These include the announcement of visa-free travel to the UK, a direct British Airways flight from the end of March, and the signing of a partnership arrangement by Guyana’s foreign affairs and international cooperation minister in November 2022.