Looking for a great New Year

As we enter 2011, there is a great deal of optimism that the worst of the global recession is over.  As a result there is a great expectation that things will improve in Jamaica in the New Year.

Indeed as we look back on 2010, we see where progress was made in significantly reducing the interest rates at which government borrows with rates in the single digits for the first time in decades.  The lending rates at the banks have gone down although not as much as we would have wanted.

The government has set out a difficult budget and for the first time in many years has actually stuck to the budget.  This has happened despite the additional costs associated with the incursion into Tivoli and the damage done by tropical storm Nicole.  Revenues are nearly in line with the forecast and expenditure is being managed tightly.  Added to this is a reduction in crime which is going to lead to a reduction in expenses for businesses and makes it easier to sell the country to tourists.

However, the job is far from finished and I would hate to see the sacrifices that were made by the people end up going to waste.  In this year let us resolve to stay the course, to carefully manage our budget and the level of deficit.  We have started upon the journey but there is still a long way to go.  The question is whether this government has the nerve to do the right things which will prove to be unpopular with the masses and may very well cost it the election.  It is similar to the situation in which United States president Obama finds himself.  What is best for the country is not necessarily what is best for his party.  However the mark of a true leader is one who is prepared to make the difficult decisions even if it is at the expense of your own best interest.

It is not the time to grow faint but it is a time when all of us should persevere and push forward to a future where we will no longer be burdened by debt.  A future where jobs are readily available, a future where health care facilities are properly equipped and staffed and a future where our children receive a quality education.  It won’t come to pass this year but if we make the right decisions we will see the benefits sooner rather than later.

I wish you a happy new year and may God richly bless and keep you throughout the year and may at the end of the year we be able to say that we see the light at the end of the tunnel.