An official from the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC) has welcomed the "encouraging" drop in national unemployment revealed in a recent Department of Statistics report, while encouraging the government to do more to encourage entrepreneurialism.
BCCEC Chief Executive Officer Edison Sumner said: "It's certainly very encouraging that the level of unemployment has gone down...whether it's through self-employment exercises or gainful employment in established companies."
The Department of Statistics released its most recent labor force survey on Friday. The survey showed that the country's unemployment rate has fallen to 14.3 percent, down from 15.4 percent in November 2013.
"The levels of unemployment are going to go down based on some of the other things we're seeing happening. Of course, we are very heavily reliant on the opening of Baha Mar, which is coming on stream...we see that they have begun taking persons out of their leadership development programs, who they're now putting into job placements," added Sumner.
"Apart from persons looking for gainful employment, we would strongly recommend...that the government [create] an enabling environment for individuals in this country to be able to pursue their dreams of entrepreneurship and job ownership rather than necessarily looking for a job."
Sumner tied the unemployment figures back to the issue of brain drain in the country and called on the government to tap into the Bahamian diaspora and encourage educated Bahamians to return to the country to bolster employment.
"When you look at the creativity and ingenuity of those persons...I believe that we can create even more jobs and opportunities from those kinds of experiences," stated Sumner, while expressing hope that the decreasing trend of unemployment rates continues.
"We are encouraged by the numbers. We know that there are a number of projects on the way that will hopefully continue to reduce those numbers, and we would ideally like to see the level of unemployment...below 10 percent," said Sumner.
Both New Providence and Grand Bahama experienced decreases in their unemployment rates, falling to 15 percent and 14.7 percent, respectively. Grand Bahama experienced a significant drop in its unemployment rate, falling over 2 percent, from 16.8 percent in November 2013.
The number of discouraged workers in the country also fell roughly 28 percent from 6,765 to 4,880 during the same time period. Unemployment among Bahamians aged 15 to 24 remained considerably higher than any other age demographic, at 28 percent; though this also constituted a decrease compared to November's figures.
In a statement issued Friday afternoon, Minister of State for Finance Michael Halkitis claimed that youth unemployment remains a concern.
"Overall, the survey paints a picture of a gradual improvement in the labor market in line with the gradual strengthening of the Bahamian economy," he said.
The report additionally revealed a slight discrepancy between the unemployment rate for men and women. The rate of women's unemployment remained slightly higher than that of men, at 15.3 percent compared to 13.5 percent. Department of Statistics Statistician Cypreanna Winters largely attributed this to the construction and hospitality industries.
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