St. Lucia Simply Beautiful

Value Added Tax (VAT) will be very much a part of the Budget and it is very likely that we are stuck with it. There are many among us who wish it would never happen but there are certain things in life that must come to pass, it is just a matter of time. The time for VAT in St. Lucia seems to have arrived. What is important is going forward. I feel the Budget will have something for everyone. Select your area and go for it. The test in the end will be how many new ideas were translated into productive, high profit yielding ventures. I must emphasise the point that it will take government’s invention in most cases to ensure successful outcomes.

There are many non-fossil fuel alternative sources of supply that Barbados can consider as options. They include Biomass cogeneration, Wind, Solar, Waste to energy incineration, Combined heat and power, Imported power, Landfill capping, Wave, Tidal, OTEC, Fuel cells and Nuclear.

We have established that on the one hand, the business life cycle can be intrinsically much longer than that of the human being but on the other hand the increasing failure rate is the real problem. How can we address this? Well, of course the answer is the CBET Shepherding Model which has been tested over the last three years.

I am at the stage of life when funerals come fast and frequently. Before one’s parents would represent the family at funerals but that is no longer the case. Indeed, I now find myself, at an alarmingly increasingly rate, attending funerals of persons younger than myself.

The Government of St. Lucia recently announced the introduction of VAT on September 1, 2012. This announcement did not come as a surprise to most business development watchers in St. Lucia and around the OCES. St. Lucia remains the only OECS state which has not introduced the VAT and with the pressure mounting from the international financial organizations, it was only a matter of time for the VAT to be introduced here, irrespective of the party in power.

If history is to be our guide, it is safe to assume that the VAT will be implemented, come September 1 and with only four months to go, businesses and organizations may want to begin to prepare for that magic date. Yes, there are many challenges to be faced with the implementation by September 1, but one must also remember that this talk about VAT being implemented in St. Lucia has been around for a few years and with an economy which is not doing so well and international lenders who are insisting on tax reform as a condition for receiving assistance which may get the country out of the recession, there is more to gain by embracing the opportunities which September 1 can bring, rather than to focus mainly on the challenges ahead.

Vieux Fort is really the Frontier of happiness and prosperity. It is taking shape before our very eyes. It is my hope that overseas visitors and residents visiting the South during the season of Jazz will take time off the mix pleasure with business so that they can make informed decisions about investing in the area.

Let us talk VAT!

There is no better time for a revival in our hearts. This special time of year gives an opportunity to take a new look at the way we live our lives and making a commitment to being our brother’s keeper. Most people live for themselves but the real joy of living comes from caring for others. It is in giving that we receive. Be involved in the service of others.

Corporate governance is the system by which businesses are directed and controlled. It involves a set of relationships between a company’s management, its board, its shareholders and other stakeholders; it deals with prevention or mitigation of the conflicts of interest and is intended to increase the confidence of stakeholders. It addresses the accountability of the people in the business with the purpose of safeguarding its long-term success. Threats to good corporate governance are disharmony in the ranks, and egos getting in the way.