Investment results from Miami Summit still to be ascertained
Five months after the 1999 Miami Summit which President Bharrat Jagdeo said was likely to lead to investments in the informatics sector and open new markets for Guyana's produce, an update on developments could not be obtained. Director of the Guyana Office for Investment (Go-Invest), Deochand Narain, said he had no comment to offer on the issue and repeated efforts to get a response from the government's coordinator on investment, Kellawan Lall, have proved futile. Mr Jagdeo had told reporters in mid-December that a Trinidadian firm had expressed interest in data processing and was guaranteeing the creation of 250 jobs in four months. Three other firms, Mr Jagdeo had said, had expressed interest in similar projects with direct links via satellite to North America. The local phone company, the President had said, was willing to facilitate these investments. Mr Jagdeo had announced a five-year tax holiday for investors in the informatics sector in Guyana. The President had also said that a few of the world's largest commodity traders in the US were to visit Guyana in the early part of this year. He had indicated that there were discussions with these traders about the potential for marketing Guyana's rice, sugar and bauxite. The International Business Council of Greater Fort Lauderdale was also scheduled to visit Guyana in January but this trip also did not come off.
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