SAINT LUCIA EXPERIENCING DOWN TURN IN ECONOMIC ACTIVITY
September 12, 2008
EDWARD HARRIS AT LARGE!
SAINT LUCIA EXPERIENCING DOWN TURN IN ECONOMIC ACTIVITY
The country that Saint Lucia is most dependent upon for its trading activities is the United States of America. The current environment as it relates to economic activities in the USA is cause for concern. Tourism is the backbone of St. Lucia’s economy, given the state of the global airline industry and in the USA in particular, there is definitely difficult times ahead for the industry. The upcoming Presidential Election is not helping as Americans are focused on the very close race between Democrats and Republicans.
As I write this article Hurricane IKE is heading for the oil refineries in the Texas region and the threat of disruption to the production capacity of refineries in the area is real. The result will be a hike in oil prices and further cut backs in fuel dependent industries. It is in this regard that the decision taken by OECS Heads at a meeting in St. Lucia on Thursday, September 11, 2008 to form an economic union with Trinidad and Tobago is a step in the right direction. One immediate area that should be tackled is the establishment of a regional airline which T&T has to financial ability to implement. The high cost of airfare within the region which impedes contact among the people must be dealt with as a matter of urgency.
Looking towards the immediate future, it is necessary to conclude the Economic Partnership Agreement with the European in the shortest possible time. It is now certain that the EPA will be signed by all Cariforum partners, except Guyana which is likely to fall in line before the actual date of the signing of the agreement. The implementation of the EPA is even more necessary as it is possible to expand trade with EU States to take up the shortfall in USA and Canada tourist arrivals and direct foreign investment.
In the coming months, there will be countless sensitisation programmes as the Government seeks to bring the nation up to date on rapid developments taking place. These are serious times and the developments currently under consideration, and those pending will impact on the life on every citizen. The people are demanding the right to know and civil society organizations are beginning to take their place at the discussion table.
Recent developments with the EPA have established a new relationship between the Government and the people. The word stakeholder has taken on relevance and we now have a situation where representative organizations are invited to participate in discussions prior to signatures being affixed to documents that will commit the nation for decades. However, it is the civil society organizations’ responsibility to ensure that the information filters down to the masses.
People have been crying out to be involved in the process of decision making. It is going to demand a lot of patience in proposing ideas to the masses but it is necessary. We see the effects within the tourism industry where our citizens are asked to be kind to the tourists but there is still a lot to be done to inform and educate the people on the importance of tourism. EPA is around the corner and there will be a lot to be learnt about various aspects of the agreement in relation to its trade and development components.
CSME is another area of development which I suspect will be fast forwarded to catch up with the EPA. This has been dragging along for too long. Just do it. There is need to keep our professionals and skilled workers at home. The best way to do this is to open up the borders to free movement of people. Money is moving freely all the time. The right of establishment legislation is now in place and businesses are opening up in a very orderly manner. There is no rush, people are taking their time to make the decision on which country to locate. Rather than thinking to block citizens of Caricom member countries, it is time local Entrepreneurs begin to establish cross border companies and take advantage of locating in Trinidad and Tobago where there is money. However, the reverse is happening, T&T Entrepreneurs are the ones coming to St. Lucia.
Caricom – Canada Trade Agreement is soon to be negotiated and it is possible that lessons that have been learnt from the EPA negotiations will be effectively applied. Quietly, a number of draft pieces of legislation are in the works and a number of initiatives to facilitate proper sensitization of citizens are being pursued.
It seems that the stage is now set for meaningful partnership between the Government and the people and from hereon civil society representatives will have their jobs cut out for them.
The economic down turn being experienced in St. Lucia is not unique but rather a world trend especially among our traditional trading partners. A few projects in the tourism sector are experiencing difficulties and there is every indication that things are slowing down but there is hope. We now have to shift focus and seek out new relationships. The EPA is a step in that direction.
Keep the Faith, God is in Charge, Dream Big and Expect Miracles Everyday!!!
Edward Harris
Real Estate CyberSpace Specialist (RECS)
Freelance Journalist, Biblicist, Business & PR Consultant, Realtor, Networker, Private Sector & CSR Advocate, Motivational Speaker
Email: eaharrisdestiny@gmail.com
Website: http://www.stluciasimplybeautiful.com