Guyana mapping strategy to trigger demand for hotels, other businesses

Last Updated on Monday, 8 July 2024, 7:53 by Writer

President Irfaan Ali on Sunday announced that government was crafting a strategy to stimulate demand for hotels, malls and fast food services.

“We have to understand that the government and the private sector, together, we have to invest in bringing the traffic in so that the services, the facilities that we’re building will have the demand structure to support those services and facilities,” he said.

He made the announcement at the official launch of the Guyana-branch of the United States-headquartered Asian restaurant, P.F. Chang, located on High Street, Kingston, Georgetown. Giving a snapshot of government’s strategic approach, he said they would include the creation of events and tournaments as part of an “ecosystem” of attracting people to visit Guyana.

Dr Ali estimates that Guyana needs about two million persons “passing through” to make businesses in the tourism and hospitality sector viable. He noted that each of the 10 restaurants that would open by the end of 2025 would have bars and entertainment areas as well as new malls.

Emphasising the need for every Guyanese to understand the importance of “Brand Guyana”, he said workers were “shuffling” around in the service industry “but that can’t work as a medium and long term strategy”. “In everything you do, protect the brand and that is what we have to do…and all of us be marketers of Brand Guyana,” he said.

The President said he was taken aback recently when persons called him expressing concern that during Cricket World Cup, they had received quotations stating US$7,000 per night at the Marriott Hotel in Guyana. “That would have hurt us because we did not have the capacity, it hurt us because we did not have the rooms but we’re investing in that now,” he said.

In recent years, Amazonia, Movietowne and West Central malls have opened their doors. Lakeside, Courtyard by Marriott, Four Points Marriott, Aiden, Pasha Global, AC Hotels Marriott and Sherriff hotels are at various stages of construction.