Mother of the dead guard, Rosaline Wellington in tears yesterday.

She was found lying face down at the site of the Digicel Tower about 05:30 h by a woman from the neighbourhood who, usually, calls out to her.

The woman said she called for Chester as is her custom but having got no answer, took a closer look and saw the lifeless body.

DEAD: Nancy Chester

Chester’s mother, Rosaline Wellington, 71, told the Guyana Chronicle that her daughter left home for work about 18:00 h Tuesday afternoon after complaining of feeling unwell.

The elderly woman disclosed that her daughter had gone to a hospital earlier in the day to test her heart and blood pressure and the results were satisfactory.

However, Instant Security Service, for which Chester worked, said she answered a telephone call up to 03:15 h yesterday morning.

Her shift was to end at 07:00 h.

The workplace at Sophia where Chester died.

Cullen Bess-Nelson photos saved in a folder in Graphics as Woman found dead at Digicel.

Guyana records positives in World Bank’s Doing Business 2010 report
– efforts to ease business start up, cross border trading highlighted
GUYANA’S efforts to augment the process of setting up businesses and trading across borders have been cited as positive reforms enhancing business activities in the country.

In its Doing Business 2010 report, the World Bank noted the reforms undertaken in Guyana which were aimed at reducing the administrative burden for firms.

“Guyana eased business start-up by applying a flat registration fee for all companies, regardless of their capital amount, and removing the duty payable on incorporation. It also streamlined registration with the tax authorities with the introduction of a single tax identification number for corporate, value added, and labour taxes. Implementation of an electronic declaration system reduced customs clearance times for exports and imports,” the Report said.

According to the report, a high ranking on the ease of doing business index signals that the regulatory environment is conducive to the operation of business. The index averages the country’s percentile rankings on 10 topics which are made up of a variety of factors and covers the period June 2008 through May 2009. Economies are ranked on their ease of doing business, from 1 – 183, with first place being the best.

In the report, Guyana is ranked at 101 this year scoring higher than neighbouring Brazil and Venezuela which scored a rank of 129 and 177 respectively. The report titled Doing Business 2010: Reforming Through Difficult Times is the seventh in a series of annual reports investigating regulations that enhance and those that constrain business activities.

According to the report, “Most Doing Business reforms in developing economies still focus on cutting red tape and simplifying bureaucratic formalities. Over the past 6 years, 80% of reforms in low- and lower-middle income economies were aimed at reducing the administrative burden for firms, mostly by easing business start-up and trade. This makes sense and addresses important needs.”

The report measures regulations affecting 10 stages of a business’ life which includes starting a business, dealing with construction permits, employing workers, registering property, getting credit, protecting investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts and closing a business.

The report states that the indicators are used to analyse economic outcomes and identify what reforms have worked, where and why. It also stated that most reforms recorded in 2008/2009 were part of longer term efforts to increase competitiveness and encourage firm and job creation by improving the regulatory environment for businesses.

For every country identified, the report examines the challenges of launching a business which includes the number of steps entrepreneurs can expect to go through to launch, the time it takes on average and the cost and minimum capital required as a percentage of gross national income (GNI) per capita.

In this area, Guyana was ranked at 97, putting it between Jordan and Papua New Guinea and far above Brazil, Haiti and Venezuela.

“Regulatory reform can be difficult and take time, particularly if legal changes are involved. Some reforms also require difficult political trade-offs. It is not surprising that most reforms recorded by Doing Business in 2008/09 were aimed at reducing administrative burdens. At least 30 economies improved processes for construction permitting, property registration or trading across borders, while 61 eased business start-up.” (GINA)