BUSINESS • ENTREPRENEURSHIP • GUYANA
Guyana’s fifth annual ECONOME conference honours innovators and entrepreneurs with a black tie ceremony at the newly opened Four Points by Sheraton — a night that marks how far the movement has come.
By La Cariëña NewsJune 21, 2026
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Georgetown, Guyana — After a Day One that crackled with energy, bold ideas, and the kind of conversations that make you want to rethink everything, ECONOME V did not slow down for its finale. Sunday night, the fifth edition of Guyana’s premier entrepreneurship conference pivoted from boardroom talk to ballroom brilliance — welcoming guests to the ECONOME Black Tie Awards Experience at the Four Points by Sheraton.
Red carpet from 6:00 PM. Main event at 7:00 PM. Dress code: your best.
It was the kind of night that reminded the room why they came. And with Sunday, June 21 also being Father’s Day, the timing carried its own meaning — a celebration of men and women who are quietly building something worth passing on. As La Cariëña News noted earlier today, the Caribbean’s most enduring legacy is not just what our fathers built, but who they raised.
FROM PODCAST TO MOVEMENT
ECONOME did not start as a conference. It started as a podcast called Common Cent£, a project with one clear aim: to spark entrepreneurial thinking and improve financial literacy in Guyana. Five years and five editions later, it has grown into something harder to contain in a single word. A platform. A community. A mirror held up to what Guyanese business can become.
This year’s theme — “Swim Different” — captured that spirit precisely. Not just doing business, but doing it differently. Taking the lane no one else has claimed.
The conference has also been expanding its reach beyond Georgetown. Earlier this year, ECONOME took its format to Region Three with the “Untapped Waters” investment forum — the first edition held outside the capital — in recognition that Guyana’s economic transformation is not a Georgetown story alone.
NIGHT ONE SET THE STAGE
Saturday, June 20 brought the business conference and mixer — a full day of sessions, panels, and the kind of networking that Instagram reels try (and usually fail) to capture.
NIGHT TWO: THE ECONOMES
Sunday night belonged to the awards. The ECONOME Black Tie Awards Experience is, as the conference’s own speakers page puts it, “the highlight of ECONOME V” — a dedicated ceremony to recognise young business owners and entrepreneurs who are building something real.
Dressed in black tie against the backdrop of the Four Points by Sheraton, the room gathered not just to celebrate individual winners but to hold up a mirror to what an entire generation of Guyanese entrepreneurs is quietly assembling.
When the Finance Minister shows up to your awards night, the conversation has clearly moved upstream.
A SPONSOR LIST THAT TELLS ITS OWN STORY
The list of ECONOME V partners reflects how seriously the Guyanese business establishment now takes this event. ExxonMobil, whose Stabroek Block operations have remade the country’s economic outlook, sponsored the conference alongside GBTI (Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry), MODEC Mining, G-Mining, Panjam, tagman, ADNation, AGM, Austins, Steadfast, Headstart, Clean Audio, and Mike’s Pharmacy, among others.
The investment angle is one ECONOME has leaned into deliberately. The Region Three “Untapped Waters” event earlier this year drew presentations from GO-Invest’s Senior Director of Investment, John Edghill, who outlined the rapid formation of opportunities across logistics, agro-processing, housing, mobility, tourism, and industrial services in the corridor west of Georgetown.
WHAT ECONOME KEEPS GETTING RIGHT
BIG SMITH News Watch was among the media outlets to cover the event ahead of the weekend, describing ECONOME V as bringing together “some of the region’s most innovative thinkers, entrepreneurs and changemakers for a weekend designed to challenge conventional thinking and unlock new opportunities for growth.”
Tickets ran $15,000 Guyanese dollars for a weekend pass, sold through a network of outlets across Georgetown including the University of Success Bookstore at Giftland Mall, Urban Aesthetics Studio on Charlotte Street, and Mike’s Pharmacy in Blygezight Gardens. The organisers made deliberate choices to keep access broad.
For those whose interest in ECONOME was piqued by this weekend, the conference’s expanding footprint is worth watching. The Region Three “Untapped Waters” forum in April drew more than 120 entrepreneurs to West Central Mall Theatre — proof that demand for this kind of platform extends well beyond Georgetown’s business community.
And as we noted earlier today for Father’s Day, for the business-minded person in your life, a seat in a room like ECONOME’s may be the most practical gift going.
THE BIGGER PICTURE
ECONOME V lands at a particular moment in Guyana’s history. The country’s economy is growing faster than almost any other on earth, driven by offshore oil revenues that have already begun reshaping what is possible for businesses of all sizes. But economic growth and the equitable distribution of that growth are different things. ECONOME has staked out a position in that gap — not as a policy conference, but as a practical one. Here is the knowledge. Here are the people. Here is the network. Now go build something.
Night Two was the punctuation mark on that argument: a black tie ceremony, yes, but also a declaration. The innovators being recognised tonight did not inherit their positions. They built them. And in a Guyana that is being rebuilt in real time, that matters more than most awards nights let on.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is the ECONOME Black Tie Awards Experience?
The ECONOME Black Tie Awards Experience is Night Two of the annual ECONOME Business Conference & Mixer in Guyana. Held at the Four Points by Sheraton in Georgetown, it recognises young entrepreneurs and business leaders with a formal awards ceremony following a red carpet arrival.
When and where is ECONOME V taking place?
ECONOME V runs June 20–21, 2026 at the Four Points by Sheraton, Georgetown, Guyana. Night One is the business conference and mixer; Night Two is the Black Tie Awards Experience with red carpet at 6:00 PM and main ceremony at 7:00 PM.
Who founded ECONOME Business Conference?
ECONOME was founded by Matthew Gaul and grew out of a financial literacy podcast called Common Cent£. It has since grown into one of Guyana’s most recognised entrepreneurship platforms, now expanding beyond Georgetown to regions including Region Three.
Who are the speakers at ECONOME V Night Two?
Night Two features Hon. Steven Jacobs, MP (Minister within the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports) and Hon. Dr. Ashni Singh, MP (Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance) as guest speakers.
Who sponsors ECONOME V?
ECONOME V sponsors include ExxonMobil, GBTI, MODEC Mining, G-Mining, Panjam, tagman, ADNation, AGM, Austins, Steadfast, Headstart, Clean Audio, and Mike’s Pharmacy, among others.
Has ECONOME expanded outside Georgetown?
Yes. In April 2026, ECONOME held its first regional edition — the “Untapped Waters” investment forum — in Region Three, in partnership with the Region Three Chamber of Commerce and Industry. It drew over 120 entrepreneurs to West Central Mall Theatre.
ECONOME V • June 20–21, 2026 • Four Points by Sheraton, Georgetown, Guyana
@econome_business • @economegy • economeconference.gy
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