ON MARCH 2, VOTE FOR LEADERS WHO CAN FIX GUYANA
ABRIDGED ACTION PLAN TO IGNITE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Robert Badal,
Presidential Candidate
“On March 2nd, patriotism must defeat tribal ethnicity. We must never return to the dark years and horror stories of the last 50 years. After decades of gold, bauxite, sugar and timber, Guyanese still suffer from blackouts. A lack of clean water, hopeless healthcare, failing education and inadequate housing. Guyana needs efficient, effective, trustworthy and transparent leadership. We deserve better-pay, sustainable jobs, a lower tax burden and a better quality of life.”
Nigel Hinds, Chairman
“We in Guyana cannot wish away racism, our political, corporate and community leaders have to focus on inclusivity and diversity in governance and employment, we have to spread the wealth and development across all sectors of Guyana.”
Mishka Puran,
Roopan Ramotar,
“Guyana needs to move forward and flourish as quick as possible. Regressive thinking, racism, hatred and other divisive devices hold no place in a modern country. I am a change maker to be a part of a positive revolution, where the people of Guyana come first and the country is able to utilise its vast resources for the betterment of all. The old parties with their misguided policies must be defeated and to do so requires strong leadership, vision and integrity. Change Guyana encompasses all of those ideals. Vote Change on March 2.”
“Guyana must accelerate economic development using our abundant natural resources. In region 2 we will bridge the Supenaam river and expand the coastline for agricultural development; we will establish an Agricultural Bank to provide low cost financing. Modern hospitals and sports facilities must be a priority for all Regions. Our destiny awaits us.”
Prime Ministerial Candidate
Vice-Chairman
REDUCE TAXES… MORE MONEY IN YOUR POCKET! • Pay no taxes on personal income on the first $100,000 or less. • Reduce VAT from 14% to 12% • Make cars more affordable: • Less than 2000 CC: duties from 45% to 20% • 2000 – 3000 CC: duties from 200% to 75% • 3000 CC or more: duties from 297% to 100% • No taxes on new electric and hybrid cars. • Abolish property and capital gains taxes • No taxes on data plan, electricity, water and education
• No import taxes on machinery for farming, mining and other manufacturing industries • Tax free status for all farmers • Reduce import taxes on all medical and health care supplies • Reduce taxes on fuel from 50% to 30% immediately
DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS FOR JOB CREATION • • • • •
Liberalization of the Telecommunications sector. IT hubs to expand job opportunities for youths Central Government Campus driven by information technology and artificial intelligence Demerara and Corentyne River Bridge within three years Specialty Hospital for expanded healthcare in all regions Shore Base Port and Oil Services at Crab Island, East Berbice.
• • • • • • •
Road from Mandela Road to Timehri Regional Economic Zones - Integrating Community Development with job creation. Pipeline bringing Gas to shore to power a massive industrial development program Value added to Bauxite Downstream Petrochemical Projects Gold Refinery to increase local value added New City - Georgetown has surpass its capacity
REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLANS FOR JOB CREATION Programs across all Regions • • • • • • • •
Housing and community development Expand road networks and connectivity. Tax Free Status for all farmers - they pay no income tax. Elevate the standard of health care. Expand vocational training to equip our youths with the skills for entry into the workplace and inspire entrepreneurship. Job creation initiatives in all regions through fiscal incentives for business development. Paddy Bug control in all rice growing areas Facilitate private sector investments in agro-processing.
Region 2 - Essequibo Coast and Islands • • • •
A Special Economic Zone based on processing of agricultural production. Includes Coconut, Cassava and other ground provisions and rice cereals. Cogeneration of electricity from abundant supplies of rice waste. A solar farm to generate 5MW of electricity. Improvement of the wharf and port facility
Region 3 - West Coast Demerara • • • •
Build a fixed bridge across the Demerara River within three years. Cogeneration of electricity at Uitvlugt Sugar Estate and other value added and diversification initiatives. Lands of closed Sugar estate to be allotted to displaced sugar workers for agricultural development. Improvements in farm roads and drainage and irrigation infrastructure in rice growing areas.
Region 6 - East Berbice. • •
• • • • • • • •
Region 10 - Linden • • • • • •
Region 5 - Mahaica - Mahaicony • • •
Reverse the exorbitant increase in land rents to rice farmers. Improvements to the drainage and irrigation infrastructure. Cogeneration of electricity from rice waste.
Special economic zone for agro-processing agricultural. Lands of closed Sugar estate to be allotted to displaced sugar workers for agricultural development, Government to provide technical, product development and marketing support. Cogeneration of electricity at Albion and Blairmont. Phased diversification initiatives at all sugar estates A royalty of $5 per metric ton of bauxite exported to fund developments in New Amsterdam and Kwakwani. A shore base oil services facility on Crab Island Open vast acreage of lands on the east bank of Berbice for agricultural development - dairy, beef, oranges, limes, avocados, cocoa, rice, etc Facilitate private sector investments in fishery and agro-processing. Designate investments in east Berbice as tax free for five years. Address the spiraling crime, blackouts and poor infrastructure
• • • • • •
A Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Linden based on processing of Guyanese hard-wood. Wood processing facility owned by Linderers in joint venture with local or foreign private companies who bring capital and technology A port facility for the loading of logs and export products Cogeneration of electricity using the by-product of wood processing. Encourage Increased value added on Bauxite through fiscal incentives. A special levy on raw log and bauxite ore exported to provide funding for Linden’s industrial and infrastructural development. Attract investors for large scale agricultural development of the intermediate Savannahs. Revisit the Tiger Falls hydropower project. Engage the Government of Brazil on the Lethem-Linden road and make linden a transshipment port. Enhance Eco-tourism development. Extend vocational training facilities to Linden. Low cost financing to stimulate small and medium sized businesses
Oil & Gas: Guyanese First Policy
•
•
• •
•
•
• •
•
•
Negotiate a better deal over time on all existing contracts. All blocks for which the investors commitments were not delivered to date would be returned to state ownership and vested in a state-owned National Oil company (NOC). Every citizen of Guyana would be assigned shares in the NOC from birth. Such shares would appreciate in value with every Auction and signing bonus. Sales of these shares may only be disposed of to one’s family or the NOC. This will give every Guyanese a stake in our oil resources and the benefits thereof. Blocks would be auctioned periodically to realize the highest price with attractive signing bonuses. From 2020 to 2022 revenues from oil would be used to uplift the income levels of all employed through reduction in income taxes, improvements in health care, education and urgently needed infrastructural works including a bridge across the Demerara River. From 2023 the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) will be activated. A portion of the annual income from oil will be appropriated to this fund. The balance would be appropriated to specific Funds for infrastructural development, a Healthcare, an education, an agricultural and industrial development fund. A special allocation, a Welfare Fund, would be made to finance a safety net for depressed communities, single parents, the elderly and the more vulnerable in our society.
Housing and Community Development •
• • • • •
Formation of a Housing Development Corporation, to professionally run on the basis of private sector principles of efficiency, in planning and building competitively priced low and middle income homes. Allot Completed Homes instead of House Lots Low cost financing to buyers of these homes. Allocation - Teachers, Nurses, Police, Low income earners. Special Economic Zones with attractive fiscal incentives to incentivize job creation around these communities. Mini Power Grid based on renewables to provide low cost electricity in these areas.
Rice and Agriculture • • • •
• • •
Remove VAT on all Capital equipment for Rice and the agricultural sector generally. Reduce taxes on fuel from 50% to 30% immediately Establish an Agricultural and Industrial Development Bank to provide low interest credit to farmers and small businesses Staged investments to improve infrastructure in agricultural areas across our Country to improve access, productivity, reduce postharvest losses and stimulate investments. Reform the GRDB to remove political domination and improve its research and development capability. Cut the high cost of export of rice including the export commission to GRDB. Mandating GRA to absorb the cost of scanning export containers.
Inspire a culture of service to the agricultural sector by the Ministry of Agriculture Fiscal Incentives for export development in all areas Convert NARI into a Research and Development entity to prepare project profile of new crops for plantation style development.
Energy & Electricity: End Blackouts! •
• • •
•
Phased Privatization of Generating Assets. Generation of electricity to be private sector managed and owned and electricity supplied to GPL under a Power Purchase (PPA) arrangement. All investments in new generation to be fueled by LNG or gas that is more cost effective and environmentally friendly. GPL to use its resources in building a modernized Smart Grid to ensure reliability, better management and control of technical and commercial losses. Recapitalization of GPL financial structure by Government taking over all loans and improving GPL’s credit rating and borrowing capacity. Instead of loan repayments Diversify the energy mix by facilitating private sector investments in solar, wind and hydroelectric projects under a PPA.
Health Care • • • • • • • •
Provide first world quality healthcare in all regions. Improved training facilities for nurses and Medical professionals Review role of NIS and the ease of accessing health care coverage Incentivize private sector health programs to attract world call service Build the Specialty Hospital Reorganize the Georgetown Hospital Corporation Restructure the national procurement of drugs. Elevate the quality of medical care in rural areas to reduce the reliance on facilities in Georgetown.
Governance: Power to the people • • • • • •
Constitutional Reform: more representative democracy Legislation End Corruption Regulations for campaign financing Institutional Strengthening of Integrity Legislation Procurement Legislation Source of Funds legislation
Crime and Security • • • • • • •
Professional standards for hiring and training of police. Increase salaries, health and benefits for all security personnel Use of Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras in major populated areas Community policing on a strategic basis, with a concentration on high-crime areas E-policing design to improve community trust in police officers Move prisons out of Georgetown and Lusignan Establish a corruption court.
• • • • • • • • • •
YOUTH POLICY
Make youth employment and entrepreneurship a critical component of the macro economic framework Make schools and University curriculum more responsive to the needs of the economy Stem the tide of mass migration by UG Graduates by creating jobs through an expanded economy. Tax incentive Mechanisms to encourage Employers to provide on the job training for youths Tax credits to Banks and other lending institutions for financing entrepreneurs, startups, small businesses and micro-enterprises. Corporations will receive tax credits who create, adopt or maintain community sports facilities. Free education from Nursery to University, plus 20 Scholarships to the top performing students across Guyana for specialized study every year Develop a National Sports Strategy to lift the standard of sports in Guyana Build a strategic alliance with the Business sector to host, sponsor and manage sporting events, provide businesses with tax incentives Establish a Junior Olympics program
TIME FOR LEADERS WHO CAN FIX GUYANA, NOT MAKE IT WORSE! ON
MARCH 2 VOTE FOR JOB CREATION END BLACKOUTS HEALTH CARE LOWER TAXES
www.ChangeGuyana.com | info@ChangeGuyana.com | 226-1316