President Irfaan Ali yesterday announced that the Governments of Guyana, Barbados and the twin-island republic of Trinidad and Tobago on Thursday formed a new company that will introduce a passenger and cargo ferry system.
He made this revelation while addressing a gathering at the contract signing for the US$35 million Mackenzie/ Wismar Bridge in Region 10 (Upper Demerara- Berbice).
The Head of State said that through this company, the ferry system is expected to transport passengers and cargo to Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados.
“That will open up massive opportunities,” he said to those gathered at the contract signing event
He added “We have to get this going and then we have to work on expanding”.
Back in May, 2022 Stabroek News reported that Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago were on the brink of experiment with the setting up of a ferry service between the two countries to transport people and cargo.
The announcement was also made by President Irfaan Ali during a press conference hosted at State House with Trinidad’s Prime Minister Keith Rowley on a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that was signed for co-operation in a number of areas.
“As we speak to you now, we are already exploring the possibility of having a cargo plus ferry facility as an experiment between Guyana and Trinidad moving people and goods and services… We cannot address any issues unless we create a platform, the vehicle that will allow us to do that and this MoU does that,” President Ali said during opening remarks on the memorandum between the two countries.
Ali stated that the experiment by both governments signals the seriousness and commitment to move in the direction of achieving the goals on the CARICOM agenda including slashing the food import bill of the region by 25% by 2025.
Ali said that following discussions with PM Rowley, the government advanced their conversation on how to address issues such as pre-clearance and sanitary and phytosanitary requirements to ensure bureaucracy does not exist along trade lines. He added that even issues such as de-barking of timber for export to the twin island republic, which was not on the agenda were discussed.
“…we were talking about de-barking lumber, de-barking lumber is required for lumber coming out of Guyana and exported to Trinidad and Prime Minister Rowley made a point that if we do all the necessary spraying and treatment and so, then we have to examine why this is still an issue. So yes, not only are we committing to removing any impediments … all the issues we highlighted in the MoU but we have already gone a step further we are outlying the mechanisms…” the President stated.
Additionally, Ali said discussions on trade barriers were not only based on Guyana’s challenges but those of the entire CARICOM region.
“There is a special focus in CARICOM not only to Guyana and Trinidad on all barriers to trade and impediments…We have not only drawn up a list between Guyana and Trinidad but we have drawn up a comprehensive document for the entire region itemizing every issue, every product, saying where we are on those issues and the action required by member states,” he explained, noting that they are going to propose a new formula to address the issues rather than utilizing the CARICOM Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) mechanism.
