Bridgetown, Barbados – Public and private sector entities across the Caribbean region have been urged to improve business processes to best standards, in an effort to generate economic growth and employment.
According to Darcy Boyce, Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister of Barbados, the region cannot afford to wait on projects to be developed and executed only at the regional level in an effort to build economic resilience.
Boyce who delivered the keynote address at the opening of the Caribbean Exporters’ Colloquium 2014, on Tuesday, said the region must fine-tune the focus between growth and balance .
“Each of the sectors we develop and/or maintain contributes differently to economic growth, net foreign exchange position, employment and fiscal revenues,” he told the delegates at the second colloquium organized by Caribbean Export.
In making reference to the CARICOM (Caribbean Community) Commission on Economy, that was established in 2013 as a response to the persistent economic difficulties in the region, he said the Commission has recognised macroeconomic stability is not sufficient to be a catalyst for growth in Caricom states.
“Our view is that we cannot wait for projects to be developed and executed only at the regional level, requiring consensus and thus moving at the pace of the slowest……we cannot postpone the effort to general economic growth and employment and thus to build economic resilience”
He said in order to achieve the resilience needed there must be “a genuine, open and deep dialogue and relationship between the public, business and trade union sectors”.
Boyce added that the CARICOM Commission on the Economy anticipates receiving a proposal at the end of the colloquium that will be included in a report to CARICOM Heads of Government in February.
The two-day Caribbean Exporters’ Colloquium is being hosted by the Caribbean Export Development Agency and is funded by the European Union under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF).
