Dear Editor,
Kenny Anthony was guest speaker at the UWI's recently concluded Distinguished Open Lecture Series. This event did not receive much media coverage, but the sober analysis of Anthony is of importance to all Caribbean nationals.
Prime Minister Anthony was not afraid to admit that, although the world has changed, Caricom's approach to economic planning remains the same. Said he: "Several indicators suggest that we have reached a point in our evolution as countries, where the old assumptions are out of sync with reality."
It is undeniable that the loss of preferential treatment for the exports of ACP countries, of which the Caribbean is a member will pose a challenge to economic growth. However, the reality is that the region refused to become competitive and acquire the expertise of our foreign partners.
It is undeniable that the loss of preferential treatment for the exports of ACP countries, of which the Caribbean is a member will pose a challenge to economic growth. However, the reality is that the region refused to become competitive and acquire the expertise of our foreign partners.
Anthony rightly opined: "In hindsight, we must ask ourselves why we did not learn from our competitors, and expand our production frontiers beyond our own geographic limits. Instead, we shrank our imaginations and remained insular. We declined to learn the bitter lessons of our own history."
Regional leaders have made several calls for the provision of more aid, in light of growing socio-economic issues, at the expense of productive partnerships. For example, we could solicit assistance from the European Union to build our own Caribbean Institute of Innovation and Technology to strengthen the link between academia and industry. Presently, the region's foreign partners have been urging policymakers to maximise the benefits of trade agreements such as the Economic Partnership Agreement with Europe. This suggests that our foreign allies are more interested in open trade than aid. But regional politicians continue to delude themselves by thinking that the world owes the Caribbean a living.
The irony in all of this, however, is that the same leaders who clamour for aid also want their islands to become republics. What a shame!
Lipton Matthews
Caricom's shame
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Kenny Anthony was guest speaker at the UWI's recently concluded Distinguished Open Lecture Series. This event did not receive much media coverage, but the sober analysis of Anthony is of importance to all Caribbean nationals.
Prime Minister Anthony was not afraid to admit that, although the world has changed, Caricom's approach to economic planning remains the same. Said he: "Several indicators suggest that we have reached a point in our evolution as countries, where the old assumptions are out of sync with reality."
It is undeniable that the loss of preferential treatment for the exports of ACP countries, of which the Caribbean is a member will pose a challenge to economic growth. However, the reality is that the region refused to become competitive and acquire the expertise of our foreign partners.
It is undeniable that the loss of preferential treatment for the exports of ACP countries, of which the Caribbean is a member will pose a challenge to economic growth. However, the reality is that the region refused to become competitive and acquire the expertise of our foreign partners.
Anthony rightly opined: "In hindsight, we must ask ourselves why we did not learn from our competitors, and expand our production frontiers beyond our own geographic limits. Instead, we shrank our imaginations and remained insular. We declined to learn the bitter lessons of our own history."
Regional leaders have made several calls for the provision of more aid, in light of growing socio-economic issues, at the expense of productive partnerships. For example, we could solicit assistance from the European Union to build our own Caribbean Institute of Innovation and Technology to strengthen the link between academia and industry. Presently, the region's foreign partners have been urging policymakers to maximise the benefits of trade agreements such as the Economic Partnership Agreement with Europe. This suggests that our foreign allies are more interested in open trade than aid. But regional politicians continue to delude themselves by thinking that the world owes the Caribbean a living.
The irony in all of this, however, is that the same leaders who clamour for aid also want their islands to become republics. What a shame!
Lipton Matthews
Caricom's shame
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