Barbados SHOULD focus on exporting weightless goods as a central part of its economic strategy.
Economist Avinash Persaud made this suggestion last Wednesday at the Hilton Barbados during a breakfast panel discussion entitled The Future Of Business In Barbados And The Role Of The Barbados Chamber Of Commerce And Industry.
He noted that “the world is distant and transport costs are high”.
“We’ve tried with regional transport. We should continue to try; it’s important. But it seems to me we have to export weightless products or things that can go down in a small FedEx box,” he said.
“Essentially, we’re not going to be making ourselves rich by exporting things that are very expensive to transport,” Persaud noted.
He went on to say that Government should not use taxpayers’ money to subsidise low-wage activities because of “the romance of it”.
He said while it was romantic to pledge support for agriculture, manufacturing and fisheries, Government should not be totally prescriptive.
Rather, Persaud said, Government should “enable anyone with a bright idea to get on and do the job”.
“Let the private sector takethe opportunities and if they can make a go of manufacturing in Barbados, let them do it,” he said.
The economist charged that “the private sector’s biggest problems are in fact the private sector”.
“We have a private sector in the Caribbean, not just in Barbados but small states in general, that is not particularly hungry and aggressive about its ambitions because it’s actually quite comfortable the way it is,” he said. (NB)
