Growth and development abound in Guyana

THE Alliance For Change (AFC) in similar style to its media mouthpiece, the Kaieteur News, has once again displayed its propensity for making false and unsubstantiated statements. I am certain that Sheila Holder’s bizarrely-made accusation  about there being a  padded old-age pensioners’ data base, that generated great anger particularly among the thousands of pensioners, has not been forgotten. Now, this recent  misrepresentation comes from the party’s  presidential candidate who, in an invited address, at a luncheon hosted by the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association on issues relative to the forthcoming national elections, alleged that  the present political leadership has been stifling business.

Now, this is ‘election season’ – as such  is   described nowadays – and it is to be expected  that there will be  all manner of  falsities uttered by those who aspire to the nation’s highest office. But the Guyanese people are very shrewd and sensitive, who understand their  country’s politics very well, especially when misleading statements are offered on  aspects of their country’s social and economic  well-being.

For those who may recall the teething years of the present administration, a period that had been characterized by private sector contention that their captains of industry  were not being allowed their coveted role as the economy’s engine of growth, because of the State not facilitating such a strategy. From observation, it was a situation whereby the government realised that for such to become a reality, there had to be enacted  safeguards and regulations governing the conduct of commerce and business, for an enabling environment.

Under the Jagdeo presidency, business and commerce, the private sector especially, has grown in leaps and bounds throughout the country.  A tour of the city’s shopping centre testifies to this advancement as more and more Guyanese, even foreigners, take full opportuity of an environment  conducive to business activities.

For the past five years shopping malls, now the  architectural symbol of modern shopping, have begun to dot the capital’s skyline; traditional physical structures are being refurbished to cater for expansion of more commodities; the Chinese presence has  now evolved into numerous stores, offering local shoppers a  wider variety of articles at very reasonable prices.

This millennium, has witnessed the establishment of branches of the nation’s banking houses throughout the coastal areas. This development is testimony to a business culture, that is rapidly expanding beyond the city’s limits, so much so that there are now Chambers of Commerce in all the three counties, even as distant as the Rupununi. And Mr. Ramjattan ought to know, that such commercial organisations do not come into being for merely talking shop!

Such successes  have been supported primarily, by the strengthening of legal, institutional and regulatory frameworks for doing business in Guyana. For example, there is the establishment of a commercial court that adjudicates on pertinent matters; a National Competitiveness Committee that advises on conducting business in Guyana, among other functions; a  shorter processing time for entries and goods; reduced time for businesses requesting an import/export licence; alignment of businesses and tax administration processes; and of course, record improved revenue collection. The latter, again, can only occur in a flourishing  business  environment.

All the financial institutions, and the conglomerates, have been declaring very good dividends for their individual performances over 2010. Certainly, such a positive outcome does not  occur in a country where  political leadership stifles business.

Just a reminder for Khemraj Ramjattan: The World Bank and the International Financial Corporation in its ‘Doing Business Index Report for 2010’, reported an improvement in Guyana’s rating at 100 out of 183 countries; that the last IMF Mission Report on Guyana, highlighted its Resilient and robust growth.

Maybe this presidential candidate lives in another dimension.

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