LA CARIBEÑA NEWS | BUSINESS & ENTERPRISE | JUNE 2026
BUSINESS & ENTERPRISE
Entrepreneurs complete ITC-backed training in compliance, finance, and growth strategy — just as a US$100 million national SME bank begins to take shape.
GEORGETOWN, Guyana | June 2026 | La Caribeña News
The Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association graduated its first RISE SME cohort in Georgetown in June 2026, completing ITC-backed training in business compliance, operations, pricing, access to finance, and growth strategy for Guyanese entrepreneurs.
The RISE programme — an acronym for Resilience, Innovation and Skills for Enterprise — was developed in partnership with the International Trade Centre (ITC), the Geneva-based joint agency of the United Nations and the World Trade Organization that supports SME competitiveness in developing economies. The graduation ceremony, announced by GMSA on 11 June 2026, marks the first cohort to complete the curriculum.
GMSA described the programme as equipping participants with practical knowledge across five domains: business compliance, operations management, access to finance, pricing strategy, and business growth planning. The Association credited ITC's partnership as central to the initiative and expressed commitment to supporting continued enterprise development among its membership.
Timing matters
The graduation arrives at a consequential moment for Guyanese SMEs. The Government of Guyana moved to address the financing gap on 5 June 2026, when Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh tabled the Guyana Development Bank Bill 2026 in the National Assembly. Minister Ally described it as a bank for every Guyanese, not just Georgetown. The legislation proposes micro-credit loans of up to GY$3 million at zero interest with no collateral required, paired with mentorship and training for recipients. The bank is capitalised at an initial US$100 million, with long-term support projected to reach US$200 million.
The Bill names five priority sectors for lending: agriculture and agro-processing, tourism and hospitality, services, creative industries, and digital enterprise.
Financing runs on a two-tranche structure. The Development Bank provides a GY$3 million zero-interest loan with no collateral required. Partner commercial banks then co-finance up to GY$10 million at preferential rates, giving eligible borrowers access to up to GY$13 million in total. That co-financing structure means eligible borrowers can combine both tranches at the application stage. An application roadmapcovering required documents, adviser meetings, and a mobile tracking platform is in development ahead of the bank's launch.
The gap between capital availability and business readiness is precisely what programmes such as RISE are designed to close. According to IDB research on SME survival in Guyana, limited access to credit, weak financial record-keeping, and insufficient collateral remain among the most persistent constraints on small business growth in the country. A May 2026 business luncheon hosted by GMSA heard from government minister Zulfikar Ally that too many enterprises have struggled to scale because traditional financing mechanisms do not meet their needs. Crucially, the RISE curriculum addresses the compliance dimension of that gap directly. Corporate compliance in Guyana now extends well beyond tax registration and NIS to include anti-money-laundering controls and beneficial ownership disclosures, requirements the Development Bank is expected to enforce at the application stage.
ITC's role and regional reach
The International Trade Centre operates the SME Trade Academy, its flagship e-learning platform, which hosts over 100 courses covering export development, sustainability, trade support, and entrepreneurship. According to ITC, the Academy recorded more than 600,000 enrolments and issued in excess of 150,000 certificates globally, with nearly half of 2024 registrants identifying as women.
ITC's model involves close partnership with national trade support institutions, with local organisations responsible for marketing, learner support, and assessment management. The GMSA's collaboration with ITC through the RISE programme positions the Association as a delivery partner for internationally recognised business development content within Guyana's manufacturing and services sector.
Context: a manufacturing sector in transition
The GMSA represents a sector undergoing significant structural change. Guyana's manufacturing sector grew by 20 per cent in 2025, driven by non-metallic and fabricated metal products, processed foods, and beverages — a shift away from the country's traditional reliance on rice and sugar manufacturing, according to GMSA's January 2026 budget response. The services sector expanded by 8 per cent over the same period.
Against that backdrop, GMSA has signalled broader institutional ambitions. GMSA President Rafeek Khanannounced in December 2025 plans to establish a GY$250 million business incubator and launch an UnCapped Market Place in 2026, both aimed at supporting enterprise development across the Association's membership base.
The RISE graduating class steps into that environment equipped with structured skills training and, in principle, access to a pipeline of financing instruments being assembled at the national level. Whether the Development Bank reaches small operators before the momentum from programmes such as RISE dissipates will be among the more consequential tests of Guyana's SME policy in the near term.
Disclosure: The author serves as Director and Chair of the Services Sub-Sector at the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association (GMSA). This article was produced editorially and independently of that role.
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La Caribeña News | Georgetown, Guyana | [email protected] | lacaribenanews.com