AS I SEE THINGS: Encouraging signs from region

By Brian Francis | Fri, January 27, 2012 - 12:00 AM

No one knows for sure how events are going to unfold in the global economy in 2012.

And to add insult to injury, the signals coming from the various international agencies that monitor and make projections for economies worldwide can at best be described as cautiously optimistic.

For us in the Caribbean particularly, the situation is no different. For example, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean is pretty much playing it safe in its economic growth forecasts for regional economies.

Despite the global uncertainties, there are indeed encouraging signs from several Caribbean countries as far as their determination to overcome the challenges they face day to day on the financial and economic fronts.

Recently, for example, the Prime Minister of St Lucia has made it clear that the nature of the difficulties faced by his country and the level of uncertainty in the global environment make it necessary to do things differently by adopting unorthodox approaches to problem-solving.

Specifically, Prime Minister Dr Kenny Anthony publicly declared the urgency to start “thinking outside the box” when it comes to finding economic policies that can work in the prevailing context.

Hence, in his words, “policies that may not have been deemed feasible in the past may now have to be given due consideration”.

The example of granting fiscal incentives for more than the usual 15 years to boost investment was alluded to as one such policy shift required in these challenging times.

In Jamaica, the new government has declared war on corruption. The prime minister has made it clear that ministers who serve in her cabinet would not only be expected to work extremely hard but will also be held to account for their every action.

Ministers are expected to stay clear of corruption – an activity for which there will be zero tolerance. Further, the prime minister has asked the opposition to be vigilant and be prepared to raise in the country’s parliament questions pertaining to all issues that are of relevance to the country and good governance.

And indeed the opposition has already demonstrated its commitment to take the prime minister up on her offer and hold the government accountable for everything it does in the name of the people of Jamaica.

Despite the political ramblings in the ruling National Democratic Congress in Grenada, the government is taking a serious approach to the development of the country through what it calls an economic diversification strategy that would shift the economy from dependence on two main sectors to five specific areas of activities that can potentially result in restructuring the economy to allow it to better absorb external shocks and be more resilient to change.

One of the more encouraging aspects of the planned strategy is the heavy focus on agribusiness and agro processing to transform the country’s agricultural sector.

It is a well-known fact that agro processing adds a tremendous amount of value to agricultural products and therefore it is the preferred approach for a small country like Grenada that imports a large quantity of processed food.

Clearly, therefore, what we are witnessing in the Caribbean are attempts by various governments to tackle head-on the challenges they face, particularly from external sources. And for all intents and purposes the proactive approaches by these governments demand full support and encouragement from all and sundry.

I wish all those countries well now and in the future!