Drained and Irritated
Intentions At a sitting of the National Assembly today, the country was likely to hear the views and vision of President Ramotar as he addresses the members of the august parliamentary institution. It is expected that the President will take the opportunity to outline his legislative priorities and, in effect, give Guyanese a glimpse of [...]
A tough year for micro lenders
Dedicated Sometime in the not too distant future, the Institute for Private Enterprise Development (IPED) will hold its 26th Annual General Meeting to discuss the performance of the organization over the last year, and most likely attend to other housekeeping matters. The information that it will share with the public this time around is unlikely [...]
As gold keeps hope alive, can the leaders deliver salvation?
Fork in the Road The elections of 2011 have brought Guyanese to yet another juncture of history along the path of nationhood. The electorate spoke eloquently and clearly on November 28, 2011 and constructed a divided government with power being shared between the Executive and Legislative branches. Whether that was the intention or not, the [...]
More value than meets the eye
Enigma The Guyana stock market could hardly be regarded as a vibrant market place. The weekly transactions of stock trades are not the talk of the town and many might not even realize that a stock market exists in the country where shares of companies like Banks DIH, Republic Bank and Demerara Tobacco Company change [...]
Starting afresh
Focusing Belated New Year’s greetings to all Guyanese and in particular to the readers of the Stabroek News and its Business Section! As is the case each year, the New Year comes with hopes and expectations in our hearts and in our minds. It comes with offers of goodwill, good health and prosperity to family, [...]
The morning after (cont’d)
Digest Even though the waiting might be over, Guyanese will still need to digest the implications of the election results for themselves and the country as a whole. Invest-ments that were known before the elections still need to be evaluated for value to the different stakeholders, especially the unemployed. The economic emphasis of the new [...]
The morning after
Living Conditions Quite recently, the World Bank, in a September update of an online report, observed that Guyana would not meet the goal of poverty eradication as required by the Millennium Development initiative. While the World Bank wished to be more upbeat about the economic situation in Guyana, it could not. The international financial institution [...]
The mixing bowl
Weak The current administration was aware of the need to push investment in Guyana in an effort to grow the economy and to create jobs, and was engaged in several courses of action to achieve economic diversification through investment. Capital works involving roads, bridges, hospitals, schools, airports, and sea defence were the preference of the [...]
A weak supply chain
Source of Concern The condition of the sugar industry continues to be a source of concern to many Guyanese. In its budget presentation to the country this year, the administration blamed bad weather, complicated industrial relations and managerial inefficiency and ineffectiveness for the continued poor performance of the sugar industry. The unflattering situation of the [...]
The forgotten sector
Unique The United Nations (UN) will launch the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC) on October 31, 2011 and there is no publicly available evidence that Guyana is ready to join that effort with its own initiative. Many causes are given recognition by the UN annually but with a significant portion of the global economy currently [...]
At odds with itself
Spend More There comes a time when monetary policy must concede to fiscal policy. One of those times is now, when private spending has slowed down considerably and the most potent of monetary policies, interest rates, is not as effective as it could be. In Europe, all eyes are on the governments that make up [...]
A dubious human resource policy
Migrant Workers Despite the happy talk of the administration, the current model of development might not be enough to carry Guyana into the future. Guyanese workers are just not earning enough to keep them happy and to keep consumption levels where they are without the substantial help from family and friends abroad. The government has [...]
Some interesting numbers
Context According to the Bank of Guyana, the economy grew by 5.9 percent during the first half of this year. This is also the position of the administration reported a few weeks ago in the daily newspapers. As most people know, one swallow does not make a summer. Nor is it good to take isolated [...]
Low cost diplomacy, high price gains (cont’d)
Economic Ties The prominence of China in the Caribbean is a reality that the world will have to contend with, but most certainly the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. With three trade and investment initiatives under its belt, China could look forward to expanding further its economic ties with the Caribbean. The Caribbean [...]
Low cost diplomacy, high price gains
Fertile Ground For many years now China has maintained a relationship with developing countries through its bilateral and multilateral diplomacy. Where access to bilateral relationships was not possible, China placed heavy emphasis on its opportunity to meet in multilateral fora. The United Nations, with its rich crop of country representation, was fertile ground for Chinese [...]