PSC optimistic about Guyana’s economic future PDF Print E-mail
Written by Priya Nauth   
Tuesday, 03 April 2012 20:42
WITH the presentation of the $192.8 billion 2012, National Budget the private sector has expressed optimism about the future of the country resulting from continued economic growth. This is according to Chairman of the Private Sector Commission (PSC) Mr. Ramesh Dookhoo, in an interview with the Guyana Chronicle, about his reaction to the largest budget in the country's history, which was presented, last Friday to the National Assembly by Minister of Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, under the theme: ‘Remaining on Course, Uniting on Purpose – Prosperity for All’.
The economy is expected to grow by 4.1% for this year, continuing on the path of positive growth which it enjoyed for the past five years averaging 4.4%.
“I think the growth of the economy has been fantastic, I am actually very pleased to see a physical production increase in many of the commodities that we do in Guyana,” he said.
Alluding to an increase in the production of sugar, he said: “The figure that came out for last year is not what we want it to be at, but it is a seven per cent increase over the previous year – it means there are efforts there to improve the sugar industry, which is needed.”
Turning to the rice sector, he noted that this industry enjoyed an 11.3 per cent growth in output, and the industry’s highest level of annual production ever, which is a record for the country, and the other agricultural sub-sectors grew by almost six per cent, concluding, “All this augurs well for Guyana”.
Dookhoo noted that the mining and quarrying sector recorded growth of 19.2 percent in 2011; information and communications grew by a humble 1.5 per cent and the manufacturing sector grew by 6.8 per cent, a kind of growth that hasn’t been seen in a while.
“2011 was a fantastic year…so the economy really performed well,” the PSC Chairman reiterated, pointing to export and imports which have gone up, with export earnings expanding by 27 per cent.
“….I think that the private sector is very pleased with the growth in the economy,” Dookhoo declared.
Adding, “It means that the standards of living of Guyanese can go up significantly, and we are seeing this with the spending in the social sector as well,” the PSC Chairman observed.
Inflation was 3.3 percent, which he said he thought “was going to be higher” and also the interest rate continues to trend downwards which is good since the private sector will eventually be able to borrow at lesser interest rates.
In this regard, Dookhoo said he would particularly like to see more competition in the banking sector, and perhaps, a relooking at the banking laws on single borrowers’ limits and such, since the private sector would like to borrow more to engage in further businesses.
“There was a four billion dollars increase in revenue collections, which is attributed apparently to the global private sector performance, and what I was happy to see is the increase by dollar value of the corporation taxes collected, although the corporation taxes was dropped by five per cent, the amount of monies that was collected in corporation taxes increased to 17.5 billion,” he highlighted.
“I hope to see a time when we could probably have another band of PAYE (Pay As You Earn) taxation, where the middle class or middle income earners can pay 20 per cent instead of 30 per cent, but I believe the government of Guyana is doing that gradually working on the really low wage earners and then looking at the formula for the other middle income wage earners,” he said.
The PSC Chairman also noted that he is extremely happy with the reserves that Guyana has now of US$798M.
“The private sector wants to work with Government at this time to transform the economy a little bit more. We have to come up with novel approaches to manufacturing, to wood processing industries and such,” Dookhoo expressed.
“I hear all of the politicians talking the same language which means we can work on it collectively. I would now like to see the constructive engagement of discussing this budget in Parliament, we have some very talented people on both sides of the House…let’s focus less on the personalities and the parties and their differences, and let us focus on what the people of Guyana wants,” he urged.
“I am very optimistic about the future. I believe Guyana is in a place where she can emerge as a player of very great potential,” the PSC Chairman insisted.
He pointed out that he had an opportunity to look at the huge investment being done by CGX in oil exploration, positing, “If Guyana strikes oil, we are going to be in a place where we never dreamed about being before.”
He said through the National Competitiveness Strategy (NCS), one of the objectives in collaborating with Government has been to focus on small businesses, which has a representative seated on the table.
“They are in a place where they will be able to access non bank loans and to finance their development, and I am very happy to see that the registration of small businesses is going the way we want it to go that is going forward,” he said, adding that 120 businesses have been registered this year, and hopes that it will increase next year.
“As long as these businesses are recoginsed under the Act and they meet the requirements, they are entitled to many incentives under the Act,” Dookhoo noted.
He said the fund created should work to further help develop the small businesses. US$1.7 million is budgeted in 2012 for the operationalisation of the Small Business Development Fund which will provide for a collateral guarantee scheme, an interest payment support facility, and a grant scheme to assist SMEs and vulnerable persons with viable business propositions to implement their business endeavours.
 
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