Letter of the Day | Build engines of growth

THE EDITOR, Madam:

It would be a great pity if the core of Dane Smith’s letter, published on September 30, was lost because of its BPO context.

That context is important but, much more so, as well as for its own sake, is the rebuilding of Jamaica’s growth engine, which is the central message of the letter.

What is crucial not to overlook is the government’s agency in the rebuilding. The initiative and the energy must come from the government. The private sector must be pulled in to help. By itself, however, this sector is mainly interested in maintaining its service bias and limited productive capacity. Jamaica’s current sluggish economy is the visible outcome.

Point two is the alternative sector that Smith proposes.

“Agro-processing should become one of Jamaica’s next major growth areas. We produce a range of agricultural products, yet we lose too much potential value when goods are sold with little or no processing. … Jamaica should be exporting more sauces, juices, seasonings, concentrates, packaged foods, nutraceuticals and other value-added products.”

Three years ago, following up on an idea by Professor Don Robotham, I submitted letters to The Gleaner making this same agro-processing point and emphasising the unique flavour, the exotic character, of our herbs and fruits as our market advantage.

This uniqueness means Jamaica’s exclusive hold on markets is a powerful tool, capable of providing the very “take-off” that a small country is seeking.

Smith’s third point is developing the efficient port facilities essential to the logistics hub that Jamaica aspires to create. It is extremely valid. It could lead to the warehousing, packaging and distribution that would make an enormous contribution to the agro-processing initiative.

The critical question, though, is whether this government would even consider being the initiator and driver of an agro-processing project. This is unlikely. It would require joined-up ministries, which the government would reluctantly undertake. Even more unlikely would be its subordinating, to the general good, the importing benefits enjoyed by a handful of those in power.

HORACE LEVY