Guyana Development Bank to expand opportunities, drive inclusive growth

The establishment of the Guyana Development Bank (GDB) marks a critical step in transforming the country’s economic landscape, with a strong focus on inclusion, entrepreneurship and sustainable growth.

Speaking in an interview with the Department of Public Information, Economist Joel Bhagwandin explained that, unlike traditional banks, the GDB is designed to support individuals who have been unable to access financing – particularly small entrepreneurs and those operating in the informal economy.

He noted that the initiative will provide interest-free and collateral-free loans.

The economist also said the bank will offer business training, mentorship and financial guidance, giving citizens the tools needed not just to start businesses, but to sustain and scale them.

Bhagwandin highlighted that over 80,000 new businesses have been registered in recent years, signalling strong entrepreneurial interest.

However, many remain limited by a lack of access to financing and formal systems, gaps that the development bank aims to close by transitioning small operators into the formal economy.

“Nobody must be left behind, and this is why the Development Bank is so important. It is to create new industries, not to compete with the commercial banks,” he stated.

The economist also underscored the bank’s role in strengthening key sectors such as agriculture, where expanded financing and support services will help unlock Guyana’s vast underutilised lands and boost food production.

“With those investments and the policy framework, it is important to get more young people in agriculture. By learning innovative ways of conducting agriculture and by seeing agriculture not as a laborious profession, but as a viable, sustainable business,” he noted.

Additionally, he pointed to opportunities in tourism and new industries, explaining that the bank will help drive diversification as Guyana prepares for a future where oil production stabilises.

Bhagwandin emphasised that the Development Bank is not intended to compete with commercial banks, but to fill a critical financing gap in creating new business opportunities for Guyanese.

This initiative, he underscored, forms part of a strategic mechanism to reduce poverty, expand opportunity, and empower citizens, ensuring that more Guyanese can actively participate in and benefit from the country’s rapid economic transformation.