Today is Budget Day...What are YOU hoping for?

Today is a day that affects the lives of all Guyanese, even if most of them don’t quite realize it.

Dr. Ashni Singh, Minister of Finance, will present the Government budget for 2009. This time however, he is presenting a budget when our country is feeling the ripples of a global financial crisis that has engulfed the economies of the developed and developing countries. Budget 2009 therefore comes at a most crucial time.

Our economy hasn’t grown much in recent years so it will be very interesting to note if the Minister will be forecasting growth in the economy during these turbulent times, or what the projected inflation rate will be.

What will also be interesting to know is how much of our GDP will be government spending on what and where exactly the money will be coming from. Well actually the last part isn’t much of a mystery. VAT, PAYE for individuals, corporate taxes for corporations will account for most of the government’s income, but where will the rest be coming from?

However, the part that will concern all of us is if the 16% rate of VAT will be reduced, a suggestion that has been made several times before but has always been rebuffed and whether the income tax threshold will be increased.

Traditionally, our budgets have been full of numbers and words but always lacking in vision, optimism and hope, let us hope beyond hope that 2009 will be different.