Handling Her Business!

Guyana’s first Women’s Chamber of Commerce launched

DPI, Guyana, Friday, November 22, 2019

Guyana’s first-ever Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry Guyana (WCCIG) was launched last evening with the tag line “Champions of Change for women of the future!”

The launch was held in the Grand Savannah room at the Pegasus Hotel Guyana and attracted such powerful women as Sophie Makonnen, IDB Guyana’s Country Representative and Office of the Prime Minister’s Legal Advisor/Coordinator of Governance Office and WCCIG Board Member, Tamara Khan.

Giving the opening remarks and simultaneously highlighting the struggle of female business owners, was President of the WCCIG, Kerensa Gravesande-Bart

“We struggle to gain access to capital, access to markets, sometimes even access to networking opportunities. Did you know as well that the average economy gives women three-quarters of the legal rights of men, especially in developing countries, this might shock a lot of us. It means we need better laws; we need better regulatory reform and we need better business practices.”

Vice President of the WCCIG, Lyndell Danzie-Black supported her President by showcasing how the chamber could help those very women.

“We also believe that we can help our members to create excellence in doing business. To ensure women own businesses and women-led businesses are equipped with sound and technical business procedures as well as market intelligence for decision making both regionally and internationally.”

The WCCIG will join with the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI). President of the GCCI, Nicholas Boyer lauded the breaking of certain stereotypes in the business community by the WCCIG.

“I Nicholas Boyer, a male, am standing here as part of the establishment. We have to as men, take recognition of that fact. Because if we try to deny it, we would be lying to an entire group that needs us to understand and realise the fact that there is an establishment and for us to step aside, to make room for, not in contention with, women, to break that glass ceiling, we have to start by admitting that fact.”

To date, there has never been a female president at the helm of the GCCI, a fact that was not lost on Nicholas.

“Our chamber, and now we have this organisation, will promote a new cadre of women who are strong, intelligent and are going to be trailblazers and successful, and that glass ceiling has a time limit, it is women like Kerensa, like Lyndell that will shatter that glass ceiling.”

Earlier in the day, Boyer attended the launch of the Women in Business Expo, showing support of him and the GCCI for the industrious women who are going above and beyond to excel in the business community.

WCCIG has seven Board of Directors, they are: Kerensa Gravesande-Bart, Chief Executive Officer, Strategic Recruitment Solutions Incorporated; Lyndell Danzie-Black, Managing Director, Cerulean Incorporated; Renata Exeter, Chief Executive Officer, GUYOIL; Anije Lambert, Managing Director/Researcher, Professional Development Consultants; Sherry Ann Dixon, International Motivational Speaker/Journalist; Tamara Khan, OPM Legal Advisor/Coordinator of Governance Office  and Jennifer Cipriani, Managing Director, ACME Marketing Consultancy.

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