Bermuda-registered Digicel began offering services in Guyana last week — the fast-growing wireless telecommunication company’s 22nd market in the Caribbean region.

Digicel has invested $60 million in the Guyana operation, which employs around 200 people, and will also open some 50 retail stores across the country.

Guyana has a population of 800,000 and mobile penetration at an estimated 22 percent.

Leslie Buckley, vice-chairman of Digicel Group, said: “We are delighted to be in Guyana at last and are excited about the huge potential for growth that Guyana offers. Our goal is that mobile penetration levels in Guyana will double in the not too distant future.”

Digicel Guyana is led by chief executive officer Tim Bahrani, who has more than ten years’ experience in senior management in the telecommunications industry.

With a total of 4 million customers, Digicel’s investment in the Pan Caribbean region exceeds $1.5 billion. In 2006 the company recorded a milestone of subscriber growth in excess of 100 percent. The company employs more than 3,000 people.

In conjunction with the launch, the company hosted a free public “Digicel Experience” concert in Georgetown last Wednesday, headlined by hip-hop and rhythm and blues singer Akon and attended by 15,000 people.