As the process of globalization deepens, Caribbean countries will have to reorient their economies at the national and regional levels to address the structural changes that globalization brings, according to Sir K. Dwight Venner, KBE Governor of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank.
Sir Dwight addressed participants at the Bahamas Business Outlook Seminar 2003 on Monday.
His topic was the “Short to Medium Term Economic Outlook for Small Open Economies such as The Bahamas and the Caribbean .”
“In addressing our national and regional situation we have to take into consideration three critical factors, namely stablilization, stimulation and transformation of our economies,” he said.
According to Sir Dwight, Caribbean countries need to set goals, which would include growth, employment, inflation and the balance of payments.
” Stabilization and stimulation involve on the one hand demand management and the brining back into alignment of revenue and expenditure,” he said.
This must be done while trying to stimulate growth through well-chosen and well-executed public sector projects, Sir Dwight said.
He also said that incentives must also be
Sir Dwight regards transformation as the most fundamental of issues for Caribbean economies.
“We need to address it frontally if we are to make significant progress in our development efforts,” he said.
Transformation refers to the evolution of an economic system from primary activities such as agriculture and mining to secondary activities like manufacturing to tertiary activities such as providing services, which occurs in countries like The Bahamas and Barbados .
Sir Dwight said that the most important role of the State would be through the provision of high quality education and skills training for the masses both in schools and in the work force.
For the private sector, Sir Dwight suggested that regional import-export firms utilizing high technology might be the way to go in terms of setting standards for entrepreneurial activity.
Such companies would target regional and international economies allowing for leverage of specifically the tourism, finance and information technology industries, he said.
“It is critical that we develop such private sector vehicles so that space can be created for smaller entities to supply services to them as well as to cater to people who earn incomes directly from their activities,” he said.
By Julian Reid, The Bahama Journal
