EU underscores importance of civil...

early because of the EU’s planning structure. “In an engagement with the European Union, we were told that there are a large number of countries that are requesting missions to observe their elections, and they [the EU] have a long planning cycle; so, if we’re interested, we should send an early invitation. I think that has been done, because we want as many international observers in Guyana as possible,” he had said following the announcement.

Meanwhile, the EU envoy also reflected on its EU Global Gateway Trade mission here which attended by some 25 companies from nine European countries. It was during that mission that the EU/Guyana Chamber of Commerce was launch-ed. Later this year there will be a follow-up trade mission as van Nes reported that from a survey conducted after the visit, some 90 per cent of participating companies declared their interest in doing business with Guyana “and several have already put their feet on Guyanese soil.”

In July, the EU under the Global Gateway Initiative, will also partner with Guyana, the Caribbean Com-munity, and the Caribbean Export and Development Agency, to host the Caribbean Investment Forum here.

“This major event will see insightful discussions on sustainable agriculture, green economy transition, and the digitalization of business, and delve into the array of investment opportunities that can be found across the Caribbean and Guyana,” van Nes added.