Best, who was elected in December 2024 and commenced his tenure recently as the seventh president of the bank, is slated to visit a number of places and inspect various project sites in the country while here. He is also expected to hold various meetings with the finance minister and officials of his ministry in relation to ongoing projects for which the bank has provided partnership assistance.
Minister Singh while congratulating Best soon after his appointment noted that the new president is well-equipped to lead this work at this critical juncture.
“Guyana looks forward to working closely with Daniel as we tackle the pressing needs of our region and as we work together to improve the lives of all of the people of the Caribbean,” the minister said. The objective of the visit is to reaffirm the CDB’s commitment to Guyana and to explore opportunities for expanded partnership in pursuit of national development goals.
The visit also provides an opportunity for dialogue between the bank and the government of Guyana on the government’s economic objectives and priorities and how CDB can continue to provide support for these through its assistance and lending programmes.
The bank has been partnering with Guyana on a number of projects such as educational facilities, the Hospitality and Tourism Training Institute in Port Mourant, Corentyne and the Linden to Mabura Road currently under construction.
Guyana is one of the founding members of the CDB, having joined in 1970 and the Bank has been a leading partner in the country’s development over the past half-century. CDB funding in Guyana has been used for social and economic infrastructure, including schools, water systems and climate-resilient roads.
In 2020, the CDB, which is the region’s sole indigenous multilateral development finance institution based in Barbados, approved US$9.9 million for the construction of the modern Hospitality and Training Institute and US$190 million for upgrading 121 kilometres of roadway from Linden to Mabura Hill – the largest ever project in the bank’s history.
Best is a highly professional and diverse leader who was a senior infrastructure and developmentaAdvisor to the office of the prime minister of Barbados, seconded from his role as director of the projects department at CDB.
With over 30 years of experience as a Civil Engineer, Project Management Professional, and Development Banker, he is known for his ability to foster strong working relationships and lead teams to success. Under his leadership, the CDB Projects Department was able to transform the lives of approximately 1.6 million Caribbean people in the areas of education, access to resilient infrastructure and expansion of inclusive opportunities to women and girls’.
The bank also pointed out that Best not only spearheaded the bank’s collaboration outreach to other regional IFIs, but also led the development of the bank’s first Sustainable Financing Framework and created the window to mobilise private capital for regional development.
He graduated from the University of Durham with a Master of Business Administration and holds a Master of Science in Construction Engineering and Management from the University of the West Indies (St Augustine).
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