Having received reports of an alleged downward spiral of business and economic activities in the country, Government is taking every possible step to revitalise the country’s economy, Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, has said.
Harmon explained that the economy is always on the front burner of issues Cabinet members look into, and Government is working towards its resuscitation.
“The President has, at least on three occasions, summoned some of the key ministers — Finance, Agriculture, Business and Natural Resources — to look at options on how they are going to address certain things,” Harmon told reporters on Thursday.
He said the housing sector has also been earmarked as a key economic generator — to see an improvement in employment, among other things. The same will be done in several other sectors, the minister disclosed.
Harmon said Government is doing the best it can to ensure that Guyana does not follow a path similar to what had been taken by some neighbouring countries that have been experiencing economic challenges. As such, every step is being taken to ensure revitalisation of economic activities and creation of a smooth flow of money in the system, he said.
He said, however, that Guyana’s situation has to be considered comparatively with the economic realities of neighbouring countries such as Brazil, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela. “These economic realities are not strange. People are reading, they are on the Internet and they understand what is going on internationally,” Harman said.
Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman has also recently shared some of the measures being taken within the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment (MNRE) that could affect economic growth across Guyana.
Bashed
Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo had earlier this month bashed Government for not doing enough to revitalise the economy. He said if government was serious about developing the economy, it could have already entered into approximately 50 public/private partnerships as it inches closer to its third year in office.
Jagdeo reiterated that the economy is sluggish, and said it was not because of the absence of drug money, as some may claim, but because of government’s own admission – the lack of investors in the country.
“People are being laid off because sales have collapsed…,” Jagdeo pointed out.
He also highlighted the huge demand for public/private partnerships as he chided government’s slothfulness in capitalising on this opportunity. Gaskin recently said the government has not entered any public/private partnership because there is no framework in place to ensure value for money and that any form of abuse is prevented.
Jagdeo, however, is contending that there is no need for a fixed framework. “If the minister is serious, he’d look at an investment opportunity where they need a PPP (Public Private Partnership). They would develop a prospectus which would estimate the cost of the project,” he said.
According to Jagdeo, the prospectus would also state conditions under which each side would participate, and the benefits to private sectors involved, whether it is guaranteed rate of return or special tax breaks; and then those conditions would be advertised.
“They could have done 50 of those by now if they are seriously involved in PPP. It’s a simple thing to be done. It’s just ordinary work to pursue PPP,” he posited.
