By Kiana WilburgMinister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman recently told members of the media during a briefing that the administration will be seeking international support for due diligence reviews. He said that this will be applied to all companies seeking to start a business in the natural resources sector. At the time, I thought this was a remarkable step that the coalition administration was taking. But upon reflection,Wholesale Jerseys China, I wondered whether due diligence reviews would be enough to protect Guyana from companies with a corrupt agenda. I will come to that.NOTHING MORE IMPORTANTIn this highly competitive market, I would agree that there is nothing more important than thorough due diligence.? Like many others with an interest in financial issues, I firmly believe that a nation can never know too much about a prospective company’s operations, finances and legal issues.? Due diligence can mean the difference between an acquisition that succeeds and one that sees the country holding the crooked end of the stick.Ideally, governments of the day should carefully investigate all information pertaining to foreign and local businesses. But let’s be real, many of the deals and agreements that are sealed at the national level, are often done without careful investigation of prospective companies.For those who may not be aware or familiar with the term, due diligence, it refers to an investigation of a business or person prior to signing a contract, or an act with a certain?standard of care. It refers to the care and discretion that any reasonable person or government should take before granting the resources of their country to another company in the name of “good relationships and the need for foreign investments”. So, the goal of due diligence is to simply discover hidden information about a business.There are many important reasons for conducting due diligence reviews. These investigations allow one to confirm that the business is what it appears to be; help to identify potential “deal killer” defects in the target and avoid a bad business transaction; help to gain information that will be useful for valuing assets; assist with defining representations and warranties, and/or negotiating price concessions; and help with verifying that the transaction complies with investment or acquisition criteria.Any sign of deception or even a simple lack of candour could soon erupt into open mistrust. Once that negative reaction occurs, it is expected that the deal will more than likely sink or a substantial discount will be demanded in order to keep it afloat. So the process of due diligence is all about ensuring that the start of any relationship is grounded in trust, confidence, transparency and adherence to the principles of accountability.An investigator or investigative firm will often use forensic accounting investigations, background checks, surveillance, mystery shopping,Cheap Jerseys Online, asset searches, financial investigations and other business investigation methods to find out what is happening at a company today.In some cases, investigators will need to review public records, speak with company clients and customers, and even contact overseas offices in order to uncover the legitimacy and potential of a company. A good private investigator will explain all the facets of a business you can investigate, and will work with you to determine exactly which services and investigation you need.ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGESThere are advantages and disadvantages to this process as well. With regard to advantages, these include the ability to collect current information to make good business and financial decisions, avoid costly mistakes, prevent future law suits from bad partnerships, help you get proof to better negotiate terms for future acquisitions, allow you to evaluate the amount of risk involved and give insight to the overall state of an organization’s health and stability.When it comes to the disadvantages of this exercise, research dictates that it could lead to a company’s disapproval and/or resentment of irregular business practices that are found.For decades now, Guyana’s failure to conduct due diligence on companies has been flagged by numerous critics.In fact, one politician from the Government’s camp posited that due diligence reviews are important and should be conducted on firms operating here, so that the nation can be able to ascertain whether they are within the boundaries of the law and/or abusing their privileges.“If they are found to be doing so, we need to hold them accountable and ensure that their concessionary benefits which they enjoy are taken away.” Apart from making this assertion, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU)’s Carl Greenidge, who now serves as the Foreign Affairs Minister, had insisted that the “abusive” behaviour of some foreign companies whic