While the Caribbean has made significant strides over the last 50 years – improving living standards, life expectancy at birth, adult literacy, school enrolment, and other key indicators of socio-economic development – there is concern that many development challenges still remain.
That point was highlighted recently by President of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), Dr. Warren Smith, as he noted that at least one-fifth of the region’s population lives in poverty. Moreover, he told those attending the opening of a two-day “Caribbean Leadership and Transformation Forum: Delivering Results”, hosted by the CDB earlier this week at the Hilton Resort, that over one-tenth of the region’s population is considered “food poor or indigent”.
“The macro-economic environment is often characterised by tepid rates of growth; unsustainable debt; high fiscal deficits; low levels of competitiveness and productivity; and high unemployment. Our predisposition to extreme vulnerabilities increases uncertainty surrounding the prospects of our region. Tropical Storm Harvey and Hurricane Irma are just stark reminders of these vulnerabilities and the unimaginable economic and social setbacks that can accompany them,” he stated.
With that in mind, Dr. Smith gave the assurance to those present that the Bank will continue to work jointly with the governments of the affected countries and the development community in general, to not only restore basic services as quickly as possible, but to move quickly to begin the reconstruction work in all of the affected countries.
His comments came as he once again raised the issue of the many development challenges facing the borrowing member countries (BMCs) of CDB, and he noted that there is no lack of familiarity with the options available to the region to address their most critical development challenges and what has succeeded and failed in those efforts.
He explained that the success rate has in fact been highest in countries which have pursued a mix of policies which encourage the private sector to assume the lead role in unlocking the economic growth potential, and in creating employment and income opportunities which ensure benefits can be shared widely; and which support the emergence of internationally competitive industries, that are also more resilient to economic and other external shocks. Likewise, he said, such policies have entrenched in them fiscal responsibility in order to build resilience by creating fiscal buffers and reducing sovereign debt.
(JRT)
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