Downgrade or no downgrade, life in Barbados goes on.
That’s according to Prime Minister Freundel Stuart who said yesterday that his Democratic Labour Party (DLP) Government would make whatever changes were necessary to cause as little disruption as possible to the social fabric of Barbados as the island continued to grapple with the economic downturn.
The DLP leader made it clear yesterday that maintaining the precious foreign reserves remained the most important factor in this strategy.
Speaking after a mass canvass through St Andrew and St Joseph yesterday, the Prime Minister said he was in no way surprised that international rating agency Moody’s downgraded Barbados last month to follow in the footsteps of Standard & Poor’s.
“No country rejoices at being downgraded, but it has not altered one tittle, any of the facilities to which Barbadians are entitled and to which they have access. Life continues. We have a comfortable foreign exchange position at the moment, and we are meeting our commitments in health and education. And we are still keeping our public servants employed.”
He added that his administration would continue to maintain stability in Barbados, since the recession would have to eventually end.
“This has been a very long night. But no matter how long a night lasts, dawn has to break. Life has always been a mixture of light and shade. While this downturn has continued much longer than we would have wished, it is going to come to an end sometime, and until we see clear signs we are on the way back, we will continue to manage our economy circumspectly, not taking any unnecessary risks.”
The Prime Minister added that Cabinet had faith in the country’s Medium Term Fiscal Strategy, but had no problem making any alterations depending on the actions and day-to-day changes which could come about during an international recession.
