Govt to operate electronic single window system in coming months

– regulations being prepared for publication in Official Gazette

Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal has announced that the Guyana Government will soon operate the electronic single window system which was launched in 2023. During a discussion on a recently televised programme, Croal said the system might be up and running in the new month, given that the electronic platform for the system is almost complete.
Following the passing of the Planning and Development Single Window Platform (PDSWP) Bill, the ministry set out to gazette regulations to govern the use of the system, and Croal has said the gazetting process, which is crucial to enhancing transparency and eliminating subjectivity, is also near completion.
“The regulation speaks towards the timeline by which an agency must respond, and if they do not respond by X time, then it is deemed as no objection. So, it brings back here accountability and transparency, so nobody can say that ‘I need to meet the minister in order to get my application bumped up’,” Croal explained.
Implementation of the single-window system forms part of Government’s efforts to create a business-friendly environment and improve the ease of doing business through an electronic portal that allows investors to submit planning and building permits, and check the status of the permits from anywhere in the world. The system would also give Guyanese citizens opportunity to access information they need, through a hassle-free process and from any part of the country.
“This platform is critical to making the sector more efficient, and will contribute greatly to the improvement of doing business,” Croal has said.
“This intervention will significantly reduce the tedium that obtains in a process that is costly, frustrating, inefficient and outdated, and will reap tremendous dividends for users. The housing sector is changing, demand is outpacing supply, and we recognize that we must work even faster,” he added.
Agencies such as the Central Board of Health, the River and Defence Board, the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Guyana Fire Service, the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority, the National Trust of Guyana, Guyana Office for Investment, and the Deeds Registry are soon to get on board.
The contract for the platform was awarded to Global Services Inc., a consortium of companies based in Guyana, North America and the United Arab Emirates, through the national competitive bidding process.
The cost for development and implementation of the system is $202.9 million.
At the contract signing ceremony in 2023, representatives of Global Services had said the system they intend to develop and install would allow for continuous updates, so there would be no need to spend additional sums of money to improve the system should the technology continue to advance.