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World Bank reports a drop in Guyanese business
According to the World Bank report for 2018, Ease of Doing Business, it has been reported that there has been a drop in Guyana’s investor interests.
The report illustrates that in 2017 Guyana was ranked as the 126th country to execute easy business, but in 2018 the country dropped to position 134.
This account comes after the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Incorporated (NASDAQ) reported that Guyana has the fastest growing economy in the world.
UG Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah- Ann Lynch
The NASDAQ stock market is known to the world as a popular American stock exchange market. It is in fact, the second largest stock exchange corporation in the world by market capitalization, just shadowing the New York Stock Exchange.
That report stated that Guyana has a projected growth rate of 16.8% during the four- year period of 2018-2021, which led investigators of the stock exchange giant to the conclusion that the country is currently the fastest growing economy in the world.
But according to the US Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah- Ann Lynch, the plunge is a result of challenges the country faces such as high taxes, constant power outages, and corruption.
“Some of the contributing issues highlighted in the report included taxation, energy, infrastructure, intellectual property rights (IPR), bureaucracy, lack of transparency, corruption and citizen security.”
She further stated that countries that are plagued with war such as Iran and Gaza are “ranked better than Guyana”.
The Ambassador said that Guyana’s difficult tax system often leads to foreign companies paying higher rates than other countries. She added that the duties imposed on the imported items can be substantial, which in turn increases the competitive field.
Attention was then drawn to the cost of electricity in Guyana and the fact that the cost is the highest in the region at more than 35 cents per kilowatt.
“The power grid system antiquated, resulting in regular power outage, forcing companies to install their own power generation systems to cope with the blackouts,” Lynch added.
Other challenges included the long time it takes to acquire permits to buy land and obtain work permits. The Ambassador said because of some agencies’ reliance on using manual paperwork rather than digital, some companies may avoid investing in Guyana.
“Corruption continues to be a perennial concern but Guyana has made significant strides on this front and I’m sure it will continue to do so,” the Ambassador related.
Sarah- Ann Lynch said with oil production starting in a few months, Guyana should be able to invest more.
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