Georgetown Chamber of Commerce elects first ever Woman President

The Caribbean’s oldest business chamber, the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) elected its first female President today after being in existence for 136 years.

Managing Director of Dynotech Construction Chemicals and former Vice President of the Chamber, Kathy Smith, has been elected President of the GCCI. She replaces businessman, Kester Hutson, and will now lead the Chamber’s 21-member Council.

At a press conference today, the new GCCI President thanked the Council for reposing its confidence in her to lead the Chamber at a critical time in the country’s history.

“It is indeed a privilege for me to be given this opportunity, even more so to be the first woman president of the GCCI,” Smith said.

Her election comes at a time when almost 50% of businesses registered under the GCCI are led by women.

“I think this really speaks to the very foundation of the GCCI, and its commitment to not just women empowerment but inclusivity. In many organizations around the world, and certainly in Guyana, this role would be traditionally be filled by men, however, when I looked around the table last year, there were and have been many women councillors, and women our membership the percentage of women-owned or women led businesses is almost 50%,” the GCCI President said.

Smith intends to positively contribute to the development of women entrepreneurs during her tenure as President of the Chamber. Already a Women Micro Business Learning Centre is under construction at the GCCI, and that will provide training opportunities for women in business.

“I want to see our women entrepreneurs also be equipped with the skills needed to successfully navigate the business world, and I also want to see them have opportunities. My vision is to have the chamber of commerce establish programmes which support women being trained in financial literacy, digital marketing and of course negotiation,” she said.

She also underscored the importance of businesses being compliant with the country’s regulatory framework in order to capitalize on existing opportunities, and warned against exploitation of local businesses by foreign companies, particularly in the Oil and Gas Sector, and it supporting sectors.

“With these opportunities, we need to equip our women and Guyanese in general to continue to be able to guard against exploitation. I am talking about foreign companies that use partnerships with our local companies as a front. Then we have foreign companies that partner with our local firms and engage in double dipping. I refer to forcing the local partners to procure their products from their foreign parent company at inflated prices while also receiving profit. This needs to end, it is unethical and violates the spirit and intent of Local Content,” she said.

Smith said she knows the tasks ahead may be challenging at times, but she is up for the challenge and is thankful for the support that she will receive from the Council of the Chamber.