– says US Ambassador

OVER the past three years, the US embassy has recorded an increase in enquiries by companies at various stages of the foreign investment process, who are interested in working in Guyana.

This is according to US Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah Ann-Lynch, during her remarks at the Private Sector Commission (PSC)’s 2018 Annual General Meeting at Marriott on Friday.
She said those companies are not just in the oil and gas sector. The embassy has noted companies working in engineering, healthcare, telecommunications, infrastructure, air transportation and information technology and so forth. “With all this commercial interest in Guyana, the US embassy does its best to assist both US and Guyanese companies,” said Lynch.

This assistance comes in a variety of forms. Every year, the embassy releases a country commercial guide, including an updated Investment Climate Statement.

These documents are freely available and provided to US companies. They outline how the business climate is evolving and help to inform how interested companies approach investment in Guyana. Ambassador Lynch said the embassy also helps create partnership linkages between US and local companies. Internationally minded companies understand that having the US embassy as an asset on the ground greatly increases the chances of their business success.

To help build the bridge between US and Guyanese companies, the embassy maintains an active database. When companies inquire about partnering opportunities, the embassy can help make the connections, in both directions. “I encourage businesses interested in being added to this database to reach out to our economic/commercial staff,” she said.
While Guyana’s business climate is good, with even greater prospects for the future, it is not without its challenges. The ambassador made reference to the World Bank’s 2018 report on Ease of Doing Business, which reflected a drop in Guyana’s ranking from number 126 in 2017 to 134 in 2018, out of 190 countries.

Some of the contributing issues highlighted in the report include taxation, energy, infrastructure, intellectual property rights, bureaucracy, and lack of transparency, corruption and citizen security. Ann-Lynch believes that Guyana’s complex tax structure often leads to companies paying higher tax rates than they would in other countries.
In addition, she said the duties imposed on many imported items can be substantial, driving costs up beyond competitiveness. Other deficiencies, which she pointed out, included the power grid system, which she said is antiquated, resulting in regular power outages, forcing companies to install their own power generation systems to cope with blackouts.

“Other infrastructure gaps include lack of transitional road network and a deep-water port which, if addressed, would decrease the time and cost of transporting goods,” she said, noting that as with many governments around the world, the bureaucracy here could also benefit from streamlining and modernisation.

Ann-Lynch said corruption also continues to be a perennial concern, but Guyana has made significant strides on this front and she is sure it will continue to do so.

Changes to the financial sector, combined with creation of the Financial Intelligence Unit, resulted in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) officially removing Guyana from the European Commission’s list of countries deemed deficient in anti-laundering frameworks, in February. “These issues are raised not to scare away investment, but to show that each one can be resolved over time and with the proper resources,” she said. The ambassador believes that the PSC is strategically positioned to offer the guidance needed to shape the legislation needed to move Guyana forward. The PSC sub-committees can utilise their expertise by reviewing policies put forth by the government and recommending constructive changes.

Chairman of the PSC, Desmond Sears, said the PSC intends on continuing its effort to improve the business climate in Guyana. In 2018, the PSC met with President David Granger and expressed its commitment to working closely with the government.
At the meeting, some of the key matters which were discussed included the participation of the PSC in the development of the ‘Green State Development Strategy’ and the inclusion of the committee members on government boards and bodies across the country.