Chairman of the Private Sector Commission (PSC), Captain Gerry Gouveia Jr has indicated that the Commission is currently compiling its 2026 National Budget proposal for submission to the Government based on consultation with its members.

He said in general, the Private Sector Commission will be pushing for tax reduction and incentives for businesses in addition provisions for migrant workers.

“In general, it would be things like tax reductions in business operations, it would be incentives for business communities, it could be things like examining areas for promoting migrant workers in Guyana, it could be area of further expanding Local Content participation here in Guyana. It is a quite comprehensive and long list, but those are the general areas that we are focusing on,” the PSC Chairman told reporters on Wednesday.

Captain Gouveia Jr said with the country’s oil and non-oil sectors rapidly expanding, and showing signs of positive economic growth, it is important to address the issue of labour. He said while the Private Sector supports the up-skilling of local workers, migrant workers are needed to fill the gaps.

“There is no secret that there is a labour issue in Guyana. So, while the Private Sector is promoting heavily the upskilling and inclusion of Guyanese in the workforce, we cannot hide from the fact that we need to make migrant workers apart of our economy if we want to continue the pace of growth in Guyana. So, the Private Sector, we want to support the upskilling and inclusion of Guyanese but we also have to be open to allowing migrant workers to participate and then eventually transfer skills and knowledge to Guyanese as we continue to grow,” the PSC chairman said. 

The PSC is optimistic that its recommendations will find favour with the Government, noting that many of its proposals were included in the 2025 National Budget.

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