Comments for Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME), Caribbean Single Market & Economy

Comment on Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) NOT My Business by Ozymandias

Ozymandias — Tue, 05 Sep 2006 05:06:42 +0000

The CSME is our last chance for freedom. And the time is here.

Yet most of us seem to be reacting with anger and fear and very negative attitudes. Sounds like fear of flying, and understandably so, but such hopelessness will kill you.

We are the ones who have to make things happen for ourselves, and regardless of how you feel, THE CSME IS HERE! GLOBALIZATION IS HERE! Stop being REACTIVE and become PROACTIVE.

Change can happen, but it depends on one’s attitude. Think positive!

The CSME will not succeed overnight, nor will be be ruined overnight. Whichever happens is up to you.

Comment on Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) NOT My Business by Managing with facts

Managing with facts — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 18:06:00 +0000

Question on mobility triggers

When we talk about labor mobility what do we really mean. Besides the structural (porous borders), process (admistrative activities) and institutional (rules, laws and reglatiions, policies), who triggers the move?

1. Can an individual, with the requisite criteria, just decide he or she wants to move say to Trinidad, pack bags, fill a container, buy or rent living accomodation etc and just arrive in Trinidad and HOPE to get a job?

2. Does the trigger start from an employer seeking and advertising for talent that does not exists locally? That is, no local person has responded to advertisement for reasons that include, already has a good paying job; does not possess the necessary talent – skiils, experiences, attitude, flexibility to be recruited by the “seeking” employer?

Further, is there any attention being paid to non-national labor being absorbed in the public sector? In other words, are there any restictions to say a St Lucian seeking employment in the public sector of St Kitts?

Comment on Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) NOT My Business by Managing with facts

Managing with facts — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 17:24:12 +0000

Question on CSME “units”

It appears that each country has established a CSME unit. In addition to advocacy, their main appears to be processing applications from individuals wishing to enter the country for employment.

Can someone direct me to a source that can provide more information about these “units”

Thanks

Comment on Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) NOT My Business by Managing with facts

Managing with facts — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 17:12:19 +0000

My comment relates to the labor mobility protocol of CSME.

I have read every comment and note that despite the good, the bad and the ugly of CSME, the positive consequences can be maximized and the negative minimized if there is an efficient and effective management system to measure and control mobility effects. In other words, since the inception of CSME plans, there has been no effort (or at least I am not aware of any) to implement systems (structures, processes) to measure the human capital (or talent) capacity of each country. Do any of the countries know the charateristics (quantity, skills, knowledge, attitude, obscelence) of their curent human capital stock? Has any one bothered to conduct opinion surveys with samples drawn from all levels – individuals, firms?

Knowing the starting point is imperative for measuring the short, medium and long term effects of human capital flows through national borders. Four related concerns that have been expressed in the discourse are (a) flooding in the recipient country (b) a void in the source country (c) hemorraghing to the extra-regional market (d) an eliticist approach to screening skills.

How then will a country be able to measure the mobility effects if the requisite data is not collected?. We are data deficient as well as sufferers of data phobia in this region. We participate in trade talks with out the requiiste data. and even if we provide some it is antiquated or full of gaps and of little or no use to talks of negotiation. Look, we are depending on census data from US or Canada for instance to measure the outflow, and by which time it is too late- our human capital has already left!! The region needs systems, interventions and incentives to temper the outflow and attract an inflow from the Diaspora. Moreover, the data should not be collected once in say ten years, it has to be a continuous process, and provide the government, employers and investors with the diagnostic and prognostics talent and skills metrics that can inform their policy and decision making as well as whether to invest in a particular country. Note that FDIs through multinational corporations for instance, will lcocate in countries where the talent pool is up-to-date and readily and quickly employable, otherwise they will bring their own skills.

Indeed, our patriotism forces us to be concern about and protective of dilution of our norms and values, and our traditions and our “space”. But really, are there such marked differences among us? We seem to be translating labor mobility as an exodus of bodies to the more economically and socially appealing countries, leaving a gaping hole in the less advantaged countries. It is more about quality of human capital than the quantity. Romer (1990) says it well “What is important for growth is integration not into an economy with a large number of people, but rather one with a large number of human capital”

This is a call for the source and recipient countries to design and implement efficient and effective screening models to measure and control both teh quatnity and quality of the talent necessary for susainable growth and comparative advantages. Such a model must be conceived collaboratively, among the private sector, public sector, NGOs, universities etc such that demand and supply are properly conceived in the interest of all stakeholders and customers (the tourist !) Otherwise, not only will there be a strain on the outlays for investment in training and education as the skills coming in cannot “hit the ground running” and thus would need to be further developed; but it will be a constant battle between the private and public sector as to who is responsible for providing and nurturing the talent? Should it be the education system or training programs of employers or melange of both?

Grateful for your feedback and comments

Reference
Romer, (1990). Endogenous technological change. Journal of Political Economy, 98(5)

Comment on The Caribbean Single Market and Economy – Towards a Constructive Debate on Managing Change: by Curtis Smith

Curtis Smith — Sat, 15 Jul 2006 08:39:40 +0000

With all due respect, I am not clear what your objective was – to illuminate that nations are of different sizes and require such considerations in the CSME Framework, or that a nation’s size has affected its position in the larger trading groups, e.g. WTO. Further, the language used is written in somewhat legalese, with such technicality, that it appears most appropriate to “experts” and easily leads to disinterest increasingly adding to the divide between those who know about CSME and world trading arrangements vs. those who do not. I venture to say we must bear in mind who our audience is and getting the discourse into as many circles on numerous levels as possible increase the likelihood of a greater fundesrtanding, interest and following of CSME implications. If people do not understand what is being articulated, they will remain clueless. I am very interested in CSME, am a fellow Trinidadian living in the US, a graduate of an Ivy League University and having worked in organizations I can tell you true institutional change occurs at the middle with the masses. The people will make CSME work so give them the knowledge, not just information, to bring them into the fold of operational and implementation challenges CSME faces. Establishing this blog was a great initiative on your part. Thank you.
C. Smith
Brooklyn, NY

Comment on Happy CSME – Caricom Single Market and Economy by Samuel Roach

Samuel Roach — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 07:29:36 +0000

What is CSME really about? Is it about a bunch of politicians struggling to realise a vain dream of integration? Is it about less fortunate member countries piggy-backing off the more fortunate ones? Rather, is it part of a more sinister ploy for a one-world government to be established? Maybe it is all those things; then again maybe it is really about people.

People… trying to improve the quality of lives for themselves and their families by exploring opportunities in neighbouring countries.

People… searching for a way to make a fresh start after apparently failing to realise their dreams in their countries of birth.

People… curious about what life would be like in another island and about experiencing the cultures of their brothers and sisters with a slightly different, yet similar, accent.

People… who are so passionate about finding love and spreading harmony that they marry someone from a member country and they both move to a neutral sister (or brother) state and raise a child whose nationality is different from both their own.

People, I too was an ignorant skeptic when I first heard of CSME. I thought to myself, “Oh no, we won’t be able to stop ‘foreigners’ from coming into our precious country, taking what they want and then leaving it bare.”

People, I have experienced the joys of appreciating myself and others better when I embraced the love and the friendships I have fostered with my many friends in neighboring islands.

People, let us recognise that we are one PEOPLE and begin to love and care for each other. So if you need to be the vehicle that a neighbour piggy-backs on in order for that person to improve his/her standard of living or the quality of life in this world as a whole, be proud to serve your country, your fellow man and God Almighty by accepting that we are ONE PEOPLE, people.

Comment on Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) NOT My Business by West indian

West indian — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 19:32:24 +0000

The CSME,the real deal is going to be enacted by the OECS in 2008/2009.They can pull it off because they already have the economic union,the rest of us in Barbaddos,Trinidad,Guyana, Jamaica and haiti will just have to sit back and watch.if anyone can pull off the CSME, the OECS can they have been at it for 25 years.Lets face it what we have now isn’t the CSME it’s a joke,we’re going to do so much bureaucratic nonsense in the name of sovereignty that a real economic union will never established in the region,if the OECS can pull it off then that’s great.The CSME should have started with the OECS in the first place,and not big countries who have no idea of economic unity

Comment on Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) NOT My Business by West indian

West indian — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 19:23:41 +0000

Racism is everywhere,whether it’s the Shaka Zulification of the caribbean under the banners of tourism and culture or the belief that all white people sleep with their sisters and cousins(as was the case of people in the Appalachian mountains in the USA or the royal family in the past).
All that matters is that we know not all white people sleep with their family and the representations of the caribbean depicted by both tourism ads and dancehall culture are not what being caribbean is all about.
The stereotyping of caribbean people as backward savages or bleached prostitutes is extremely annoying to progressive caribbean people.These morons don’t speak for all of us,nor do our politicians for that matter.
Sometimes you wish real life had disclaimers:
“The views expressed by these people/politicians do not necessarily reflect the views of intelligent caribbean people”
The schizophrenia of caribbean people is truly amazing,we live in a madhouse where politicians cater tothemselves and foreigners instead of their own people,where intelligence is frowed upon and ignorance is placed on a pedestal.Where everyone is afraid to question,and even when they do question they do it on the grounds of religion which should itself be questioned.
Take the CSME,a referendum was not held,yes I know we talk about logistics and education/brainwashing,but the fact is if it were up to the caribbean people it would not be enacted,it was up to a bunch of fronted politicians whowere bankrupt of other ideas.

Comment on Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) NOT My Business by vivi

vivi — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 19:20:56 +0000

There’s an ad in the paper,aparently if I subscribe to a particular telecoms company,two fair skinned girls in skimpy carnival outfits will want to be with me.I don’t know whether to laugh or to cry at the crap that passes for marketing in our country and the region on a whole.
The amount of bleached faces that appear in regional ads is amazing,even tv hosts on so called regional programs.Have the black people migrated and left the region,wasn’t there some black power movement.black is beautiful etc in the seventies that was supposed to get rid of all this crap such as racial advertising.I guess black people can’t afford phones,isn’t there a black middle and upper class?Why are we tolerating this crap?When will caribbean people boycott companies with no black people in their ads or papers with no bla people in them except as criminals?There are many educated gorgeous black women and men,but this fact is rarely reflected by the so called media.
Oh lest I forget the black cabana boy serving drinks to the white tourist,typical ads,me does ah mek this drink yah speshal foh you massa,me pick de coconut meself.Seriously it’s time for this $#!t to end.It’s amazing I lost my black roots two generations ago yet even I find these ads offensive,to vincentians,to west indians,to tourists,yes tourists find them offensive,the man sitting with them on their flights is usually a highly educated black man,surely this black man isn’t from the backwards country this ad depicts.Digicel probably wont come with these sorts of ads as the Irish ave been descriminated against by the english for generations so they would know better,I have a feeling that the companies aren’t in control that some backwards marketing firm is doing all their marketing in the region.

Comment on Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) NOT My Business by vivi

vivi — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 18:31:06 +0000

there’s a literal”pimp my caribbean country ” going on throughout the region.I don’t mean it in the”pimp my ride” sort of way I mean it in the bad way we are literally prostituting our people and our countries by selling them as the lowest common denominator,i.e a country made to please tourists and not a place where flesh and blood people live.
our education system in the region needs to be scrapped and redone to meet the requirements of the modern age,the CXC and cape should have included members of industry when they were planning,these clowns have no idea how big the global game is,I remember the reactions of foreign teachers to CXC,they laughed,”You can’t expect to compete with anyone with this crap,I will teach you this syllabus in 3 months then move on to the real thing”.Anyone who has seen the Chinese or Indian students study routines would understand why they are winning the global game,they are brighter,study harder than anyone,and the ambition the ambition is amazing,they want it all,and they bow to noone not American not British,not Japanese,the hunger they feel is palpable.The Caribbean,its people,governments and institutions are dinosaurs by comparison.Dinosaurs in a time when everyone is trying to be sleeker,more efficient.The problem is our people,the machinery works but every gear in the machine tries to justify itself or make itself feel important by slowing down the process whether it’s the big gears on top(politicians) or the small gears below(secretaries in govt offices).So much red tape its amazing,just now we have to get a license signed in triplicate and stamped twice to use the bathroom,and to make matters worse it may have to be sign by someone in another caribbean country.
I —– Chief Toilet officer of the CSME have given authorisation to _________(name here) of —— (country here) to use the toilet facilities on premises located at ——-(your home address) for a period not exceeding 5 minutes on ———(date here)
Yours Sincerely ___________
Chief toilet officer CSME

But by the time the letter gets back it would be 2 days too late so you have to hold it in and send another