The Coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to soak up the resources for both under developed and developed countries. At the time of posting this blog the global medical community has been unable to inform about a vaccine. The blogmaster read the perspective of a leading Australian virologist recently where she opined that the world will have to live with the virus, in fact it will become as accepted as the Flu.
The disruption caused by COVID-19 will impact service based economies like Barbados and others in the reason where it hurts, in the breadbasket. One could rehash old arguments about the folly of putting all our eggs in one basket. If we are to work hard to move from the unsustainable position we find ourselves, we have to do more to shift our over reliance on tourism. Government’s current investment pipeline has signaled there are no immediate or medium term plans to modify the economic engines firing the economy.
If there ever was an opportunity to message our leaders there is an urgent need to reorder how we do business, it is now.
The local authorities based on public announcements and news coverage have been rolling out awareness campaigns, bumping up screening at ports of entry, building health infrastructure and leading discussions at the regional level to ensure a regional COVID-19 approach. Given the pandemic nature of COVID-19, it seems a matter of time before Barbados reports its first case. The biggest challenge for Barbados and service based economies is the fatalistic impact disruptions to global supply chains will bring.
#lordhearourprayer
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