Invest Saint Lucia (ISL), the island’s investment promotion agency, is expected to benefit significantly from the implementation of an online investment guide, the organisation has said.
According to ISL, the guide is being facilitated by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), and the Caribbean Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (CAIPA).
The external organisations are collaborating to develop investment guides in a number of CAIPA’s member territories.
ISL said the UNCTAD representative, Ian Richards, has been working closely with the ISL team, meeting with relevant private sector stakeholders as well as a number of policy makers from various governmental departments as part of the research component of the project.
An ISL news release quoted Richards as saying that the online investment guide to Saint Lucia is aimed at both local and foreign investors and will provide investors with everything, they need to know in order to invest in the country.
“The investment guide covers a number of areas, not only how to set up a company but also what kind of licenses you need to get depending on what you do, how to pay taxes and what those tax rates are; what kind of skills are available in the country; typical wage expectations; legal framework; as well as the available opportunities,” he disclosed.
Alana Lansiquot-Brice, who is the Manager for Investment Promotion and Fulfillment at ISL, indicated that while Invest Saint Lucia provides similar information through its website in downloadable documents, this information may not all be in one place.
“The provision of information is crucial. For regions like the Caribbean, having accurate and timely information about a predictable process that is transparent from start to finish puts you ahead of the game. Investment promotion and attracting investment is very competitive and anything that you can do to get a leg up versus another country, is something you need to take advantage of,” she explained.
The iGUIDE’s content is being developed with Invest Saint Lucia, with the site designed to make the information easily updateable, it was reported.
“It will allow ISL to position itself very centrally with regard to other government departments; to understand and map out the whole experience for investors and to present that information very clearly. It will also highlight areas for reform in the country’s investment environment and will help the government to understand investor needs,” the ISL release observed.
