The Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) says that there has been a significant decline in commercial activity as a result of the present political uncertainty and it called upon “national leaders” to resolve the issues in question.
The GCCI did not identify any specific event but it appears to be referring to the political gridlock surrounding the December 21, 2018 motion of no-confidence against the government in Parliament.
The Chamber statement follows:
The Georgetown Chamber of Commerce & Industry (GCCI) has been observing and noting the occurrences in Guyana’s political environment and is concerned about the effect of the impact of the associated uncertainty on the business community. As such, the GCCI has conducted a survey in the wider business community which set out to gauge the effect of the political environment on business performance.
From the results, 64 % (percent) of respondents (or about 2 in every 3 businesses) experienced some form of decline due to uncertainty over the state of political affairs in Guyana. For those businesses which registered a decline in activity, approximately 85 % (percent) experienced a 25 % to 50 % (percent) drop in the level of commercial activity. The remaining 15 % (percent) experienced 75% to 100% (percent) decline in business.
This significant decline in commercial activity is worrying and with the continued state of political uncertainty can result in further decline in economic activity. From a national development perspective, the climate of uncertainty does not bode well for investors’ confidence, both local and foreign, as well as business planning, budgeting and other key features of business management and administration. The Chamber remains hopeful that an environment which encourages investment prevails.
GCCI’s membership size is over 240 business organizations which include micro to enterprise type levels, located throughout the country and in the CARICOM region. We therefore emphasize the need for national leaders to expediently resolve political issues that exist in order to restore and boost investors’ confidence, which would result in Guyana’s economy growing comfortably.
