Ali needs a new development model — Mike Persaud — Opinion

Ali needs a new development model

September 11, 2026·2 min read

Published in

Kiskadee Watch ·Sep 11, 2026

Dear Editor,

My prompt for this letter is that picture of a meeting of high-level leaders of the Japanese and Guyanese governments^[1] – discussing expansion of investment, commercial and trade relationships. See yesterday’s newspapers.

It looks like this meeting only discussed the niceties of investment and commercial ties. Minister Ashni Singh said, “We’d like to see more Japanese companies operating here”.^[2] President Ali is also in Qatar talking Investments.^[3] He doesn’t say what kind of factory Qatar will open in Guyana to help with economic development. Qatar is an oil-gas country, but Exxon already has that tied down.

Neither President Ali nor Minister Singh offered any specifics on the kinds of Investment and how it will advance Guyana’s economic development model.

Maybe the Investment projects are still at the conception phase. But certainly, all Guyanese would welcome Japanese companies operating in Guyana. Why? Because they are very good at manufacturing great stuff – cars, electronics. And, they are very good at marketing.

Guyana may not be suitable for cars and electronics. All parts and inputs would have to be imported, and it becomes an assembly shop.. Not too many workers are available in Guyana either; then you have to import the labour also. And, Guyana still does not have a labour/immigration policy.

Maybe Japan is very good at agriculture; very good at growing a certain type of rice. Give them 5,000 acres of good rice-growing land. Let them export all the rice to Japan. Maybe Japan is very good at canning tomatoes or Guyanese fish (sardine-type) for export. Evaluate for value-added to Guyana’s economy.

Guyana has great hard and soft woods for furniture manufacturing. Maybe Guyana should invite IKEA to open a furniture manufacturing plant. IKEA potentially could flood the world with Guyana’s prized wooden furniture.

Some models of development:

When China was allowed to join WTO (world trading system) America’s economic planners said China would do low-end manufacturing (clothes, shoes) and America high-end manufacturing (computer hard-drives, chips). We know how that worked out. China produced more engineers than the rest of the world combined – and now China makes all the high-end stuff. Guyana is too small – no labour for even low-end manufacturing – unless Guyana starts importing a few million people to settle there.
Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia – these countries have a very different model. They import millions of people to work. And, they tell the imported workers, “Save your money and go back to your country”. The standard of living & quality of life for their citizens have risen by leaps and bounds matching that of First World’s peoples. Average income of their citizens is higher than that of North Americans. Their model has proven to be very successful.
Who remembers Sir Arthur Lewis’s model of development: Theory of Labour surplus? Guyana today does not have a laboru surplus anymore. They have all migrated to North America.

President Ali needs to develop and define a new model to propel the Guyanese people to a more comfortable standard of living. Evaluate those meetings with Japanese and Qatari Investors – and let President Ali explain to the Guyanese people how that kind of investment fits-in with whatever developmental model Mr. Ali has in mind.

Yours faithfully,
Mike Persaud

References

Guyana and Japan discuss deepening commercial and trade ties - News Room Guyana — newsroom.gy ↩
Japan urged to bring more companies, technology to Guyana - News Room Guyana — newsroom.gy ↩
LuLu team to visit Guyana as President Ali explores Qatar Airways connectivity – Department of Public Information, Guyana — dpi.gov.gy ↩

Guyana and Japan discuss deepening commercial and trade ties - News Room Guyana

newsroom.gy · 2026-09-10

# Guyana and Japan discuss deepening commercial and trade ties - News Room Guyana Published: 2026-09-10T09:01:33+00:00 ... - News Room Guyana ... Politics Top Story September 10, 2026 ... With Guyana’s economy continuing to expand rapidly, Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh on Wednesday met with the State Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Mr. Iwao Horii and a Japanese team at the Ministry of Finance to discuss deepening the commercial and trade ties between the two countries so that Japan can partner with Guyana on its massive development trajectory. ... With Guyana’s economy continuing to expand rapidly, Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh on Wednesday met with the State Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Mr. Iwao Horii and a Japanese team at the Ministry of Finance to discuss deepening the commercial and trade ties between the two countries so that Japan can partner with Guyana on its massive development trajectory. Mr. Horii was accompanied by the non-resident Ambassador of Japan to Guyana, His. Excellency Akima Umezawa and other officials. During the meeting Minister Singh was accompanied by a team from the Finance Ministry. ... The two teams, in underscoring the long-standing and highly valued bilateral partnership between Guyana and Japan, also elaborated on furthering their partnership in several sectors. Minister Singh noted that this was especially since Guyana is undergoing rapid economic transformation and expansion across all sectors as he highlighted the timely opportunity for the two countries to work together at various levels. ... “We will be very interested in exploring how we can achieve deeper and more economic and commercial and trade ties, and having more Japanese companies present in Guyana, and we’re happy to speak with you about how that can be achieved. We feel that your visit sends a very clear signal at a very high level of the Japanese commitment to deepen this relationship,” Minister Singh pointed out. ... Mr. Horii also expressed his government’s interest in furtherance of the relationship between the two countries. ... “I recognize the great importance of strengthening relations with your country, which has been experiencing remarkable economic growth,” he said as he noted that the meeting was impeccably timed as is a prelude to the upcoming 60th anniversary since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Guyana to be celebrated next year. ... The high-level visit by Minister Horii serves as an important catalyst to further strengthen bilateral cooperation and explore new areas of mutual economic growth between the two countries. ... The Japanese government has been assisting Guyana in a number of areas in support of the government’s policy on improving the quality of citizens’ lives. Only in January this year, the two countries signed a concessional agreement to upgrade water treatment infrastructure in Diamond on the East Bank of Demerara.

LuLu team to visit Guyana as President Ali explores Qatar Airways connectivity – Department of Public Information, Guyana

dpi.gov.gy · 2026-09-10

LuLu team to visit Guyana as President Ali explores Qatar Airways connectivity – Department of Public Information, Guyana # LuLu team to visit Guyana as President Ali explores Qatar Airways connectivity September 10, 2026 President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali has continued a series of high-level engagements in Qatar, securing interest from international retail giant LuLu Group in Guyana and opening discussions with Qatar Airways on establishing passenger and cargo connectivity. The engagements form part of the president’s three-day State Visit to Qatar, during which Guyana and the Gulf state have been seeking to deepen bilateral cooperation and expand economic and investment ties. President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali continued engagements in Qatar as part of his three-day State Visit. He met Chairman and Managing Director of Abu Dhabi-based LuLu Group International, M. A. Yusuff Ali President Ali met Chairman and Managing Director of Abu Dhabi-based LuLu Group International, M. A. Yusuff Ali, who expressed the company’s commitment to investing in Guyana. > According to the president, “ Mr Ali expressed his commitment to investing in Guyana and indicated that a technical team will visit our country within the next 30 days to explore potential opportunities.” LuLu Retail is one of the largest retail operators in the Gulf region, with an extensive international sourcing network. The Guyanese leader also met Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Officer Hamad Ali Al-Khater, with discussions focused on the possibility of including Guyana within the airline’s network for both passenger and cargo services. Such connectivity could strengthen Guyana’s links with the Middle East and other international markets served through Qatar Airways’ global network The Guyanese leader also met Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Officer Hamad Ali Al-Khate President Ali also met Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani. In its official account of the meeting, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated: “During the meeting, they discussed cooperation relations between the two countries and ways to enhance and develop them in various fields.” President Ali and Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, engaged in discussions The statement added that the two sides also exchanged views on “several regional and international issues of mutual interest.” As part of the visit, President Ali toured Education City in Al Rayyan, including the 40,000-seat Education City Stadium, one of the venues constructed for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. President Ali and First Lady Arya Ali toured Education City in Al Rayyan The Head of State and First Lady Arya Ali also toured the Qatar Foundation campus and met Her Excellency Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, Vice Chairperson of Qatar Foundation. The engagements provided an opportunity to examine Qatar’s investments in education, research, innovation and human development and areas from which Guyana could potentially draw greater cooperation. The latest meetings follow earlier engagements during President Ali’s State Visit, including official talks with the Amir of Qatar, His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, which focused on strengthening bilateral relations and expanding investment cooperation. ### Ministry of Agriculture; NAREI – IFB; Procurement of Works ### Ministry of Home Affairs – Public Holidays Act; Youman-Nabi

Japan urged to bring more companies, technology to Guyana - News Room Guyana

newsroom.gy · 2026-09-10

# Japan urged to bring more companies, technology to Guyana - News Room Guyana Published: 2026-09-10T10:39:12+00:00 Source: newsroom.gy (newsroom.gy) Language: en ## Story Japan urged to bring more companies, technology to Guyana - News Room Guyana # Japan urged to bring more companies, technology to Guyana Business September 10, 2026 Guyana is looking to deepen its commercial relationship with Japan and attract more Japanese companies to participate in the country’s rapidly expanding economy. Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, made the pitch on Wednesday during a meeting with Japan’s State Minister of Foreign Affairs, Iwao Horii, and a Japanese delegation at the Ministry of Finance. Singh said Guyana wants to move beyond its longstanding bilateral relationship with Japan and build stronger economic, commercial and trade ties, including a greater presence of Japanese businesses in Guyana. > “We will be very interested in exploring how we can achieve deeper economic and commercial and trade ties, and having more Japanese companies present in Guyana,” Singh said. He described Japan as one of the world’s most industrialised economies, with advanced technology and globally competitive companies, arguing that Guyana stands to benefit from greater Japanese participation as the country undergoes rapid development. Singh said Horii’s visit itself was a signal of Japan’s interest in taking the relationship to a higher level. ### Japan sees opportunity in Guyana’s growth Horii, who was accompanied by Japan’s non-resident Ambassador to Guyana, Akima Umezawa, said Japan recognises the importance of strengthening its relationship with Guyana at a time when the South American country is experiencing what he described as remarkable economic growth. The discussions come ahead of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Guyana and Japan, which will be marked next year. For Guyana, the push comes as the country seeks to attract more foreign investment and diversify the economic activity emerging from its oil-driven expansion. The government has been courting international companies across infrastructure, energy, manufacturing, technology, agriculture and other sectors as public and private investment accelerates. Japan already has a track record of development cooperation with Guyana. In January, the two countries signed a concessional loan agreement to support the upgrading of water treatment infrastructure at Diamond on the East Bank of Demerara. Singh said Guyana now sees an opportunity to build on that relationship by expanding cooperation into commercial activity and encouraging Japanese companies to become more directly involved in the country’s development. The meeting is therefore being positioned as more than a diplomatic engagement, with both sides exploring how Guyana’s economic expansion can create new opportunities for Japanese investment, technology and business partnerships.