A new wave of entrepreneurs is anticipated across the country as the Government rolls out the Guyana Development Bank, which will offer small businesses interest-free loans of up to $3 million.

Senior Minister with Responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh, said the bank has the potential to unleash entrepreneurship on a scale never before seen in the country's history and open access to capital for thousands of small businesses previously shut out by collateral and interest requirements.

He spoke on Tuesday at a meeting with the bank's new Board of Directors at the Ministry of Finance, alongside Tourism Minister Susan Rodrigues and Public Service Minister Zulfikar Ally.

Dr Singh said he wants every borrower to invest in a viable idea and manage the business responsibly.

"So that their business grows not only to utilise the $3 million loan facility being provided by the GDB but so that they could graduate upwards into accessing loans from the formal financial system – the traditional commercial banks – and grow their business even more," he said.

He said the $20 billion allocated to the bank is only an initial capital injection, "not as an end, but as a means to a much bigger end". The bank is intended to sustain livelihoods and business ventures across the country, he added.

Dr Singh urged entrepreneurs and aspiring business owners to take advantage of opportunities available in several sectors, particularly the non-oil economy. Guyana's Mid-Year Report for 2026 showed that the sector grew by 10.1 per cent, continuing its exceptional growth over the past five years.

Tourism Minister Rodrigues, under whose portfolio the bank falls, congratulated the board members and said improved access to financing could help develop traditional and emerging sectors.

"We may see new scenarios and people coming up with new proposals that they won't ordinarily take to a commercial bank but there is great value in that idea," she said, urging the bank to be innovative in considering proposals outside the norm.

Public Service Minister Ally said the Government's aim is to enable more people with brilliant ideas to start small businesses within their communities.

"My Ministry will always be there to ensure efficiency in implementation," he said, pointing to the Government's digitisation policy and the bank's active website, through which applications and proposals can be submitted.

The board, appointed by Dr Singh, comprises Chairperson Abu Zaman, Deputy Chairperson Kathy Smith and Directors James Bond, Sukrishnalall Pasha, Dion Inniss, Nalinie Singh and Praem Rambharak.

The Government is urging prospective and existing entrepreneurs to submit their applications and proposals through the bank's website, https://gdb.gov.gy/.