Vision and enthusiasm are great impellers towards progress but they must also intersect with reality before they can really impact on programmes, policies or even the littlest of tasks. President Ali has clearly brought energy and enthusiasm to the presidency but on some major projects – particularly those with a regional flair – there have been setbacks and even radio silence.
One of the major ventures that has been played up by the President is a regional ferry service operating initially among Guyana, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago with other members of CARICOM to be added. This is a capital idea and would be a remarkable development in CARICOM when it comes to fruition. It would, of course, give real meaning to the regional integration movement as envisaged by the founding fathers and as enshrined in the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas. It could also eventuate in significant reduction in the cost of transport of fruits and vegetables in the region and at the same time propel production. It can also provide cheaper and quicker transportation for people in the region in the backdrop of free movement expectations. The multiplier impact from the operation of such a ferry service is incalculable and far reaching.
As Chairman of CARICOM and in other capacities, President Ali had spoken about the imminence of the ferry service. On February 24th this year, he said that the service was slated to begin operations within three months. He provided the update while addressing the opening ceremony of the 12th annual Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) consultation with Caribbean Governors at the Marriott Hotel, Kingston.
A high-level meeting had been held in Trinidad two weeks earlier on the regional ferry and all sides agreed on two months for completion of pre-clearance procedures for immigration, customs, and plant quarantine and to make the ferry service a reality as soon as possible.
On February 24th President Ali said that the aim was to also to bring on board the regional private sector to implement similar initiatives to enhance areas of the supply chain and logistics.
“We have launched the first phase of this. In another two, or three months that ferry will begin operations, and we are hoping that this will instil confidence in the private sector, and for the IDB investors, this is an excellent opportunity to bring a regional consortium together,” the president said.
He also told the gathering that this venture signals the readiness of the three countries to take action to solve shared challenges in the Caribbean region. According to Mr Ali, this initiative falls under a joint slogan, which was dubbed ‘the coalition of the willing’.
“We are not waiting on everyone. Those who are willing to start an innovative project will go ahead, and the others will join when they are ready,” he added.
Nine months later, the waiting is continuing and the conditions might not have been as propitious for the regional ferry as President Ali had made it seem. As with every groundbreaking project – and particularly in CARICOM – the challenges cannot be underestimated. President Ali may have been overly optimistic about this project and the delay and the reasons behind it can be instructive. While in Georgetown for the CARICOM-India summit and other meetings, current Chair of the regional movement, Grenadian Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell told the Sunday Stabroek that matters such as the cost of the ferry still had to be addressed.
“The challenge, obviously, is getting the right vessel, because we want a vessel that can do two things – carry cargo and at the same time carry passengers. We need a roll on/roll off vessel and getting the right vessel and getting the right price, particularly one that is fuel efficient is a challenge. It is really difficult to get the right vessel,” Mr Mitchell said.
“In fact, we were just saying… Prime Minister [Mia Mottley of Barbados] was just giving us an example of boats in Europe for consideration, but it is the price tag. That is always the challenge. So the price tag is the challenge, obviously, that we have. We are satisfied that this is an essential part of the infrastructure that we have to get going in the region, but it is still finding the right solution, finding the right vessel at the right price,” he stated.
Prime Minister Mitchell, was asked about a new time frame for implementation of the ferry service or decision on purchase of the vessel but said, “No time frame because to a large extent a lot of it really depends on getting a supplier who is prepared work with us”. It appears that an earlier plan to use the Trinidadian vessel, Galleons Passage – which had fuelled hopes for the project – had to be discarded.
The delay is a disappointment to the people of CARICOM and off-putting to any potential investor in such a scheme particularly since the type of transportation system envisaged will be better off in the hands of the private sector than the states.
There are other examples where President Ali’s enthusiasm has not been matched by action and these also involve the state of Barbados. Frenetic talk in 2022 of a food security terminal in Barbados which would be an entrepot for fruits and vegetables in particular has seen no material development. Moreover, there has been silence on this project in recent months. Again, it sends conflicting signals to producers here eager for expanded markets and who may actually begin investing in more land and preparation etc. Absence of progress is even more galling as there is a pressing need for the relief of food insecurity in all parts of CARICOM and particularly in times of natural disasters like the hurricanes that struck this year.
Another project that has not come to fruition was the 2022 promise that Barbados would provide training for 6,000 Guyanese in its tourism and hospitality sector. The first set of training was to be a hybrid of virtual and in-person and was expected to be rolled out very quickly. In the meanwhile, Guyana is pursuing its own hospitality training centre.
The three projects may not have taken off because they require regional input and therefore there is some restraint if project dynamics change or are later found unsuitable or infeasible. What restraints exist here at the moment, if any at all, in relation to big-ticket projects? The public should ponder this.
