By Antonio Dey |HGP Nightly News|
GEORGETOWN, GUYANA — The President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Kathy Smith, has issued a definitive clarion call to both prospective and current entrepreneurs across Guyana, urging them to immediately formalize their operations and organize their corporate records to qualify for upcoming financing from the Guyana Development Bank.
Smith delivered the charge during an exclusive interview with Nightly News on the sidelines of the GCCI’s recent Annual Business Breakfast Seminar at the Guyana Marriott Hotel. The seminar focused extensively on how the impending state-backed financial institution will restructure access to capital for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
According to the Chamber head, a primary hurdle facing local small businesses is the lack of institutional readiness. She emphasized that the GCCI is actively expanding its educational outreach to help grassroots operators transition into fully compliant, legally recognized commercial entities.
“We want them to understand why it’s important for them to register their business or incorporate their business, why it’s important for them to have documentation, why it’s important for them to have a track record, and why it’s important for them to set up business accounts and not personal accounts,” Smith explained.
The GCCI President stressed that proper registration and strict statutory compliance are absolute, non-negotiable prerequisites for entrepreneurs seeking to tap into the Guyana Development Bank’s highly anticipated lending facilities, which are designed to offer specialized interest-free and collateral-free loans.
While acknowledging a common sentiment among micro-entrepreneurs that interacting with state regulatory bodies can feel bureaucratically heavy, Smith countered that establishing transparency with agencies like the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), the National Insurance Scheme (NIS), and the Deeds Registry is the only definitive way to build a credible and sustainable brand. She noted that entering the formal economy carries an incredibly low cost barrier relative to its long-term corporate value.
“If we’re to talk dollars and cents, you can register a business with below $20,000 [Guyanese dollars], and that registration can last you forever once that business is sustained,” Smith pointed out.
Rather than waiting until the new development bank is fully established and open for applications, Smith strongly encouraged business owners to begin auditing and correcting their paperwork immediately. She framed the upcoming financial institution as a historic, transformative window of opportunity for local SMEs that have traditionally faced immense, rigid barriers when attempting to secure affordable credit from commercial banking chains.
Drawing on her own experiences as an active entrepreneur, the Chamber President also highlighted that regulatory compliance must be paired with visible brand identity and modern consumer touchpoints, pointing to digital media as a critical tool for building long-term marketplace reliability.
“You can now create flyers and business cards for that business. And when you do business with a client, the client can now share that information with somebody else. In other words, clients want to feel that they can trust you,” Smith stated. She concluded that matching a credible, registered corporate profile with strong branding materials will ultimately position local entrepreneurs to secure consumer trust and confidently expand their market reach as Guyana’s economy continues its historic expansion.
