The United States Embassy in Guyana has made clear its commitment to bringing more, leading American companies to Guyana, including companies that can share knowledge and expertise with local companies and make major contributions in areas such as construction.
On Tuesday, a US embassy conference saw discussions on digitization and the use of Artificial Intelligence in construction. Senior Commercial Officer of the US Embassy, Daniel Gaines, was present and spoke about the embassy’s work bringing US companies to Guyana.
“President Ali often states the United States is the preferred partner in Guyana’s development. And we take such great pride in that. And each and every day we continue to work and show up and bring leading firms to Guyana, to share knowledge and to also serve as potential partners for Guyanese companies.”
For instance, Gaines spoke of the potential transformation that Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digitization can usher in to various sectors. One such sector is the construction sector, which is currently riding a wave of momentum in Guyana amid the government’s bold infrastructure programme.
“I know the honorable minister can discuss this in greater detail than me, but when I look at modern and affordable housing, to all of the roads and bridges, hospitals that Guyana is developing, if we can use the power of AI into our workflow, it’s going to hold so much promise.”
“So, whether its optimising construction schedules, predicting equipment maintenance needs, or even just assessing project risks, AI is revolutionising how we approach project management in the construction space,” he further explained.
Meanwhile, Public Works Minister, Juan Edghill spoke about the ways in which digitisation can help the construction process. He zeroed in on the design phase.
“We have to be able to use the technology that is available, to drive us into the future. But that technology must also be able to communicate with us that our values, the things that we really cherish, must never be lost. So, it’s not just about being modern. It’s being modern in an environment where your culture and your own niche is not lost.”
He also announced that the Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL) would be facilitating engineers and lawyers from the AG chambers to do courses on International Federation of Consulting Engineers.
“I’m happy to announce tonight that, through GOAL, the government of Guyana has just made it possible by paying for our Engineers, Lawyers from the Attorney General chambers and technicians who have to do contract management, to do special courses in understanding FIDIC rules and FIDIC applications,” Minister Edghill added.
Since taking office in 2020, the Government has allocated over 20,000 house lots in new and existing housing schemes across Guyana. Additionally, more land will be acquired for new housing areas across the country.
The Government, he added, is committed to ensuring that every Guyanese family would realise their aspirations of becoming a homeowner. In pursuit of this, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration has taken the approach to open up new lands, put the requisite infrastructure in place, accelerate the allocation process, support those who require prebuilt homes, and provide easy access to finance.
In 2022, $28.2 billion was expended on the continuation of infrastructural works in new housing areas across the country including Onderneeming, Charity, Leonora, Cummings Lodge, Great Diamond, Golden Grove, Nonpareil, Enterprise, Experiment, Williamsburg, Lethem and Linden, realizing 10,430 serviced lots.
The Government has meanwhile allocated $75 billion in its 2024 budget to continue the housing programme. Some 10,000 house lots are scheduled to be distributed this year.
