THE EDITOR, Sir:KINDLY ALLOW me the opportunity to comment on the recent World Bank report on Jamaica. My interpretation of the report is that this multinational institution is demanding retooling and re-engineering of both the public and private sector to exploit the benefits of globalisation and also for some improvement in fiscal discipline to contain and reduce the national debt.
It is important that both the public and private sector be modernised to meet the challenges of globalisation. Ways must be found to reduce our production cost of goods and services. A typical example of this is the over-cost sugar industry. The sugar industry will have to be mechanised or become extinct in a couple of years, when the present preferential agreement is removed. We cannot continue to produce sugar at twice the cost on the world market. Money already wasted in bailing out this industry would be better spent retooling and retraining workers in this industry, in other profitable ventures. Similar sentiments can also be expressed for the public service, so as to ensure cost-efficiency.
The Prime Minister cannot put forth a defence of youthful exuberance on the part of the Finance Minister in entering an agreement with civil servants for 80% of the market without re-engineering of the various sectors. Also having interest rates higher than the level of inflation is crazy. Why should one take the higher risk of starting a business, when you can invest in government paper?
A country which operates by spending 60 cents out of every dollar on debt obligations and over 20 cents of the dollar on wages is either going to neglect infrastructure development or heading for bankruptcy. The World Bank is pointing us to these possibilities. The big question is, are we wise to heed this call?
I am, etc.,
M. CLARKE
mm2clarke@yahoo.com
