Guyana can capitalize on a booming South American shipping industry but its success is dependent on how it carves out its role, according to Caribbean Shipping Association (CSA) President Carlos Urriola.
In the feature address at the Shipping Association of Guyana (SAG) annual dinner and award ceremony at the Pegasus Hotel on Monday evening, Urriola explained that opportunities exist and a lot of synergy is available, which Guyana could tap into to develop both land and sea infrastructure.
He said that other South American countries—notably Brazil, Colombia and Peru—are rapidly developing their respective shipping industries. According to Urriola, there is the possibility of the Caribbean ports making use of lost opportunities in the United States, which has experienced set-backs in development of ports.
Urriola told the gathering, which included Prime Minister Samuel Hinds among other officials, that Brazil has made significant progress recently in the development of its shipping industry. He noted that as the 2014 football world cup nears, there is expected to be a further boom in the industry there and he said that this could have a domino effect already being experienced in parts of Central America.
However, Urriola said that there are several factors which remain critical to the development of the industry locally and regionally. These include finding a niche, he said, while emphasizing that there is no ‘monopoly’ in the industry today. He added that training and productivity and an efficient labour force are also important as well as security and environment-related issues.
Urriola stated that the shipping industry worldwide is recovering from a tumultuous 2009. “Last year, the industry lost billions in one year …never has this been seen before, only at 9/11,” he explained. He said that US$20B was lost during that year by the industry in the Caribbean but he noted that the lost sum will be recovered in a short time period since shipping is the “only industry” which is able to recover costs in a short time period. He added that over the past decade the ships within the industry “are getting bigger.” In 2000, he said, ships ranged between sizes of 8000 TEU and 9000 TEU. This year, figures show that ships range in sizes between 14 000 TEU and 15000 TEU. (TEU-twenty foot equivalent unit, one TEU represents a cargo capacity of a container 20 foot long.)
Meanwhile, Chairman of the SAG Andrew Astwood told the gathering that when the body was incorporated more than a decade ago, its objectives included widening its scope and being part of a wider body such as the CSA, of which it is currently a serving member. He noted that over the years SAG has been dialoguing with relevant agencies, such as the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) and other private sector organizations in order to develop and achieve its mandate. He added that the body plans to look into several areas which will benefit the industry and the country as a whole, including the development of an industrial container zone at Lethem in Region 9, take advantage of opportunities made available by the Guyana/Brazil trading corridor, and training. On the last point, he said SAG has held fruitful consultations with the University of Guyana and the Critchlow Labour College.
Astwood, however, bemoaned freight charges as bugbear for the industry and he cited recent figures that show that Guyana spends more than other parts of the Caribbean to ship goods to the US. He also lamented the retractions of the Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB), which he said also needed to be addressed. He noted that the SAG has been working to have draft of its plans in addressing the issue submitted to the administration of the DHB.
According to Astwood, the proposed establishment of a deep water harbour by the government in Berbice is being supported by the SAG, but he noted that attention must not be taken off of other ports of entry in the country when the project is realized.
He also said that figures for this year indicate that the local industry has experienced a six percent growth when compared to 2009. He said SAG is “a young private sector organization” which is growing and will be enhanced in time to come. Astwood noted that there is still a lot of work to be done to take the industry to a higher level and added that stakeholders should stand ready in this regard.
In remarks, Prime Minister Hinds noted that the government remains committed to the development of the shipping industry, adding that Guyana is still in the early stages of development.
As the curtains came down on Monday evening’s proceedings, several awards were presented to members of the SAG that provided outstanding services during 2010. Among them were John Fernandes Limited, C &V Caribbean Shipping, Laparkan Freight Forwarders and Anral Shipping Company Limited.
