Prime Minister Skerrit announced to parliament while presenting the 2019/2020 national budget that the manufacturing industry will enjoy VAT waiver. President of the Dominica Manufacturers Association (DMA), Severin MacKenzie, said the industry had been requesting for VAT waiver for eight years before this recent announcement.
According to the prime minister, the waiver will be implemented on imported raw materials. The government will also be reviewing the terms for accessing loans at the Aid Bank to enable operators within the manufacturing sector.
MacKenzie disclosed that payment of VAT on imported materials used in the manufacturing industry caused high prices of goods in the market. The high costs of building materials make it hard for people to build their houses and for homeowners to repair damages in their houses. However, with VAT removal will alleviate construction burdens on builders and ease production costs for manufacturers as well.
MacKenzie went ahead to reveal that operators within the manufacturing industry found it difficult to access the government loan facility domiciled in the Aid Bank. Investigations with the bank revealed that out of the $15 million set up for loan, only $6 million has been disbursed to customers. To this extent, about only 10 loans have been given out, amounting to a few thousand dollars.
After DMA’s annual general meeting ended last week, MacKenzie said the association wrote to the prime minister to intimate him with their problems. He added that announcing the VAT waiver in the national budget to parliament is a testament that PM Skerrit heard DMA’s complaints and acted on it.
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