Submitted by Bajan Yankee
1. Accountability: Bajans have to start using the power of the vote to elect leaders at all political levels who by virtue of their experience, education and talent can bring about significant reforms to restructure the economy of our nation. The current short sighted emphasis of electing “talking heads” who can’t execute meaningful reforms is killing us slowly. The Westminster form of governance in it’s native form is not working for Caribbean nations as a whole with major reform needed to encourage problem solving vs ridiculous academic and often endless debates the product nothing.
2. Leveraging our strengths: With one of the highest literacy rates in the world the people of Barbados need to be viewed as an underutilized commodity. Government must and can market our masses of educated people to demonstrate why Barbados is the best place for that next call centre or manufacturing facility, which is not occurring today at any meaningful level. They are great Bajan products that can be taken to a global stage, the import export business has been dominated by a few companies who are not doing the nation as a whole much, there is a role for government to play in assisting Bajan products in getting to the world market.
3. Education: Education should inspire innovation, which is the practical use of knowledge. We have an extremely rigid view of education which hinders true innovation. Because a person has a wall full of degrees does not in itself mean they can transform that knowledge effectively in the real world.
4. Solution seeking: Whenever we in the region have a problem supported my the IMF or world bank we think that a bunch of euro consultants can solve it, not the case. We have to start looking inward to consultants that understand our culture and norms. Euro thinking to the exclusion of US and Caribbean thinking in solving matters is and has not worked.
5. Our minds: We have a broad concept of thinking that says “white is right”… Not the case, we have to find outcomes to our thinking that is Carib-centric in all we do politically and economically.
6. Culture: We have to recognize that we are a special people, whenever I speak to folks that have visited Bim they often comment on how nice the people are, yes we are chill people which is a marketable commodity the tourism industry had missed and continue to ignore it’s more than filling empty hotel rooms.
7. Race: A unique form of racism still exist in Barbados, fact. We need to have open and honest discussion on why the colour of ones skin still today, directly parallels what access to financial resources one can obtain. This is one of our more difficult issues to solve as it is so deep rooted.
8. So smart we fail: Having participated in this blog for a while and being in Bim yearly, it is clear to me that local Bajans still have a plantation house slave mentality. They will take you to the mat on academic formalities but have little by way of actionable contributions to problem solving many local view points on this blog completely demonstrate that fact.
9. Redistribution of wealth: This point will totally scare the upper classes of Barbados. White people both local and international control too much of the wealth in Bim, fact. Deep rooted economic racism is why this reality exist. It is time for government to attempt to balance this reality by incubating and supporting black entrepreneurs in an effective wealth building manner….Fair is fair, instead of always giving in to those with deep pockets.
In conclusion, I love Barbados and I’m very proud of my island home, these observations are made with my grandmother who raised me in silver sands in mind. She was the first entrepreneur I know as I watched her sell ice having the only refrigerator in our gap.. She had been gone a while now but what she represented at a local gap level what can be achieve on the global stage in these troubling times.
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