CDB’s Leon says time for action is now

by Marlon Madden

Regional governments are being urged to take decisive action now to address hindrances to implementation given the urgent need to put measures in place to protect citizens from ongoing and future economic, social and environmental shocks.

The reminder came from President of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) Dr Gene Leon, who pointed out that Sir Alister McIntyre himself “noted and lamented” the region’s track record with a lack of implementation, an issue which he said has also been cited by many as “deleterious to this day”.

“As I have said on previous occasions, now is the time for definitive action to address impediments to implementation. Steps must be taken to reform legislative frameworks, enable investment and innovation, improve procurement processes, save time while maintaining compliance with best practice, and necessitate the cultural change that is needed to elevate a private sector enterprise mindset in public sector administration,” warned Leon.

He said Sir Alister’s work was one that highlighted the need for the region to create conditions that would enable residents to “achieve their full potential through improved quality of life, increased opportunities for advancement, functional, social, and economic systems that facilitate wellbeing and social cohesion”.

“Achieving this will require an eco-systemic approach formulated to bolster social, institutional, productive, environmental and financial resilience,” said Leon.

Noting that the time for negotiation was over and it was time for action, Leon said CDB will prioritise food and nutrition security, energy security, water security, and shelter security, which he said were “key areas
for the region to address in the near term to safeguard the long-term.

Leon was speaking during a UWI Press launch of Caribbean Trade, Integration and Development, a two-volume collection of selected papers and speeches of Alister McIntyre at the Walcott Warner Theatre at The UWI, Cave Hill Campus.

Volume one of Sir Alister’s work looks at trade and integration while volume two explores aspects of human resources development and higher education.

Officials say they believed the publications will be of value to a wide cross-section of the society including politicians and political leaders, students and technocrats, while pointing out that a lot of the issues identified by McIntyre over 30 years ago are still relevant today.

Sir Alister, who is attributed with championing the CARICOM integration movement while he was Secretary General between 1974 and 1977, is a Grenadian-born former UWI vice-chancellor who at one point settled in Jamaica. He passed away in Jamaica on April 20, 2019 at the age of 87.

Leon said the collection of work by Sir Alister along with similar writings that were presented to the Caribbean Heads of Government meeting in Barbados in 1967 led to the formation of the CDB in 1970.

“Therefore, it is no exaggeration to say that the bank can trace its antecedents to the writings of Sir Alister McIntyre,” he said.

Leon said his writings provided ample guidance and the CDB would continue to draw from his “vast body of knowledge to fashion solutions for current and future challenges”.

He also stated that the CDB continued to take “key aspects of his philosophy forward” and was working arduously to address several concerns including regional economic integration, trends and challenges associated with the future of Caribbean development, and the centrality of knowledge.

Leon said the CDB was keen on using information technology “to create a dynamic innovation ecosystem to foster integration into global value chains and accelerate the completion of the CSME agenda through trade facilitation and knowledge governance”.

“In addition to logistical connectivity, we are seeking to deepen the region’s cultural connectivity to create a growth mindset about the Caribbean’s development ambitions, and how we position ourselves on the global stage. To achieve this objective, we must harness technological infrastructure to create regional digital networks to facilitate and enhance services in trade, education, health, commerce and government service delivery,” he explained.

He said knowledge acquisition was another area on which the CDB was focused “to promote a shift to evidence-based decision making”, which he said was a key driver for sustainable development.

marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb