This week, Government has taken the opportunity to give the public an update on its medium term economic strategy. As I listened to the presentations in person and via the radio, I was reminded of an editorial I penned three years ago and wondered: How Far Have We Come since then? The text of the editorial, entitled “Finding some middle ground” was as follows:
“The Anguilla House of Assembly convened in the afternoon of Tuesday 11th June 2013. This meeting ended what seemed to be a lengthy hiatus from the House. The purpose of the meeting was to pass legislation to lower the import duties on vehicles as well as to give exemptions on import duties for certain business endeavours. I believe the intentions were good as this will help to alleviate some of the burden on the citizenry, encourage business development as well as stimulate the economy. These are all worthwhile and logical reasons for the actions taken in the House of Assembly. It came to mind however, that there must be some way in which the same end can be achieved without further crippling an already cash-strapped Government.
It is no secret that our country is in serious financial trouble and that Government has problems with cash-flow. Customs duty is one of the main sources of Government revenue and to my mind we ought to be very careful about making decisions that can negatively affect Government’s ability to meet its revenue targets. Perhaps some thought can be given in future to waiving a percentage of the duties payable rather than giving outright exemptions. For example in relation to the manufacturing sector, rather than giving exemptions for a decade, consideration could have been given to giving duty exemptions for the first two years and thereafter having annual incremental increases in the percentage of duties payable. Partial exemptions may also be considered for persons seeking “one-off” exemptions rather than a long-term arrangement. This seems to me to be a reasonable compromise.
When one considers the issues Government has to grapple with, I am certain that the business community will understand that a compromise position may be in the best interests of the entire country. We were all stunned a few weeks ago to learn that Government had to make the decision to scale down the Anguilla Summer Festival – Anguilla’s number one cultural event. According to the press release this was due to current financial constraints. The release also indicated that Government was still in the process of paying bills from previous festivals. Additionally, we are aware that Government is indebted to civil servants and has to make provision as to how civil servants are to be repaid the monies owed to them. Further, Government needs money for road and port development as is evident when one simply drives through The Valley or enters or leaves Anguilla.
A visit to our educational institutions will also demonstrate that money is needed for their repair, upgrade and expansion. As a country that boasts a five star tourism product, we ought to be in a position to provide better facilities for our children. The need for at least one international standard sports facility is also inescapable. We are proud when our athletes excel and we ought to be, especially since here in Anguilla the absence of proper facilities means the odds are stacked against them. Perhaps if better training facilities were available, athlete success would not be such a novelty. I must also mention the need for further Government investment in health services, facilities and equipment. If one were to spend the night at the Princess Alexandra Hospital he or she would know exactly what I mean.
The implementation of the tourism master plan should also be a priority for Government. I am sure that significant sums of money, not to mention time and effort, were expended in coming up with the plan and it will take even more to implement it. Government will need financial resources to get this going. Further, prevention of environmental degradation should also be of concern to Government and should be one of the areas to be addressed with some urgency. While we focus on tourism development, Government ought to be taking steps to ensure that the natural resources which are the bedrock of the industry are protected. This too costs money.
I would imagine that these are just a few of the many areas which require significant financial outlay on the part of Government. Did members of the House of Assembly pay any attention to these issues when deliberating on the matters presented in the House of Assembly on Tuesday? As responsible individuals, I would imagine that they did. I do believe however that it is possible to find some middle ground so that enterprise is encouraged without compromising Government’s ability to meet its obligations in relation to the provision of services and public infrastructure.”
How far do you think we have come in the last three years? Have there been any tangible improvements in the areas outlined? Many of the presentations I heard, at the economic strategy review, rehashed some of very same issues Government is grappling with. While there are glimmers of hope, in my view progress has been frustratingly slow. For many of us living here, we long for an end to our economic woes and a return to prosperity. The road seems long, hard and bumpy – and while we have endured worse, I believe we expect better. It is incumbent on our leaders to use every means at their disposal to get us there.
