(EDITOR’S NOTE: This article was posted by Ed Fields on his Facebook page on Saturday, May 2, 2020. I hope that he does not mind me publishing it in BAHAMAS CHRONICLE as a Guest Commentary. It offers some excellent and insightful suggestions to jumpstart The Bahamas’ economic recovery in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as some “bridge to future” recommendations for the sustained development of the country. The fact that “My apologies for length” was used as a sort sub-head for the article on his Facebook page supports the widely held belief that many Bahamians do not like to read articles with more than five or six paragraphs, but it is important that they read these excellent suggestions by Mr. Fields.)
GUEST COMMENTARY: BY ED FIELDS
NASSAU, Bahamas — There seems to be a general belief that for things to get back to normal, the Prime Minister just has to declare that the coast is clear.
Not so!!!
When that bell rings and we are all freed from our personal penitentiaries, most of you will find that there is no one at the gate to pick you up. We will discover that the primary sources of our commerce did not get the memo.
The only thing that will be open at LPIA will be the Wendy’s drive thru and at Prince George Dock you will have a clear view of Paradise Island unobstructed by cruise ships.
Seventy percent of our economy relies on the flow through those two ports and similar facilities in our family of islands. It is uncertain when we will we be able to open up LPIA and when ships will sail again. US unemployment is at 10 to 15 percent and “all confuddle up wit dis virus ting”, so even if the ports are open, we don’t know “if they will come”.
Then of course, we could well be rid of the virus domestically and then we have to be concerned about how to prevent it from being reintroduced. So, while there will be no more complaints about going to beaches and parks, the outcry will shift to about going to work. That is largely out of our control.
The islands of the Caribbean are in a uniquely disadvantaged situation. Their over reliance on tourism has been exposed. We will never have to speculate again about what that means. We will be tested and it will be the most difficult test we may ever face. Essentially we have had a windless, dry hurricane that did not damage property but our economic supply chain. And hence the government will have to show its leadership by ignoring all of the political concerns they would have considered in the past.
Our domestic economy is simply not enough to survive on. All of the sovereignty chest thumping is not going to change that. We need foreign reserves if we wish to continue to have well stocked shelves at the grocery stores.
Here is a formula to recovery:
- Do not be thwarted by opposition posturing but be boosted by rescuing the people. If ever there was a moment for the people’s time, it is now. Politics is never about the people. It’s about winning. If you do what is right by the people you may win. If you fail them due to concerns about the political noise, you will be sure to lose.
- Every single Finance Minister will tell you that whatever prosperity we have experienced has been as a result of Foreign Direct Investment. And that has been in spite of our sloth and the hoops we put investors through.
- Dissemble the National Economic Council. We do not have the time to have 15 cabinet ministers mull over projects they are not qualified to judge or whenever it gets on the schedule.
- Create a policy framework for investment and once the investor meets that criteria, fast track these projects through the system. We cannot afford for permits of all kinds and unnecessary vetting to hold projects up. Documents cannot sit on a civil servants desk for a year. Have you ever been in a permanent secretaries office. Their desks, floors and meeting tables are piled up with files. Each of those files represents a project or someone’s life. A project equates both to jobs and the growth of SMEs.
- Restructure the Bahamas Investment Authority and rename it the Bahamas Investment Promotions Board. The name speaks for itself. Go out and find investment, don’t just wait for it to come to us. AND NOT JUST TOURISTIC VENTURES. Agricultural, manufacturing, technology, etc., should all be on the table. And when it comes, welcome, not repel it. Just ensure that the framework allows for Bahamians to take advantage of the opportunities.
- Encourage and expand real estate development in the Family Islands in a controlled way so as to create new towns. Encourage Nassauvians and foreigners alike to build a new life — a life that will create sustainable commerce on those islands once and for all.
- Place a focus on developing high-end travel. There are folks like it or not that are recession proof. They spend more and they come for longer periods. We should become the mecca for mega yachting and upscale boutique hotels. We have islands where more rivieras could be developed if we only would allow it to happen.
There are people out there that will do these things. We can promote The Bahamas in a different light. We don’t have to focus on being a tax haven, simply a haven.
There is obviously a whole list of ideas that can be forwarded, but as the Prime Minister says, we have to be innovative and bold. Well let’s be BOLD first. Innovation will come.
The time is NOW because if we do not get it right, the time could be NEVER.
