You know, there was a time when we were a proudly prosperous people. Wherever we went in the world we took pride in our economic fortunes. It was no secret. We were the financial jewel in the crown of the Caribbean. We were the envy of developing countries. We boasted that we were one of the only Third World countries displaying First World characteristics. And why not? Our per capita income, the most common objective measure of national prosperity, was the third highest in the Americas.
Of the 34 countries of the Americas, only the U.S. and Canada were more prosperous than us. True or not, we believed ourselves to be special; the best little country on the planet. The late Dr. Myles Munroe said everywhere he went that The Bahamas was "the place where God lives". That's surely how we felt.
Over decades our economy, driven by tourism and financial services mainly, grew robustly. O we had economic challenges but they were intermittent. Disruptions to our economy almost always resulted from some global financial fallout or at least some significant slowdown in the U.S. economy. However, there was always a sense that whatever downturn we experienced would not last long, maybe only a year or two.
Jobs were abundant and hope even more so. Our dollar's parity with that of the U.S. was never in doubt, in real or perceived terms. We were happy and hopeful. Economic optimism was second nature for us. Yes, in those days, there were Bahamians struggling, but, generally speaking, the country felt prosperous and proud. When was this? It was much of that period from the late 70s to the late 90s; if not a golden age, an age of at least silver sentiments.
Fast forward to today and we, in general, hardly feel prosperous. The heads of far too many are bowed in poverty rather than raised in pride. Worse than our present desperate financial problems is the deep sense that the future seems without real hope of getting any better. Today, we go few places in our region, yea our world, feeling much better off than our neighbors. Yes, there are many nations less fortunate than we are but pride in lesser poverty is not the same as pride in greater prosperity.
Bahamians in great numbers are now looking elsewhere for jobs, opportunity, fortunes. They are now emigrating in numbers that might soon rival the days of "The Contract". They speak frequently now of the devaluation of their currency. Add to this the constant downgrades or threat of downgrades of international credit ratings agencies. We are not now so prosperous. We feel poor.
There are many Bahamians who are working hard to keep up appearances. There are men and women in nice suits and dresses driving fancy cars, living in big houses who are struggling to pay their mortgages, children's school fees and power bills.
Yes, they go out for cocktails with friends, but the squeeze is on. Thank God for overdrafts, loans - institutional and personal - and some residual income that may keep them afloat. These Bahamians sleep uneasy, if at all, wondering when the bottom will fall out and when everyone finds out just how bad they have it.
Up and down the social ladder of our country, things are not well. Many will tell you, especially folks who have been around for decades, they have never seen it this bad in The Bahamas.
Don't get me wrong, there are Bahamians who are doing exceptionally well. They have economic niches that continue to prosper. Some have businesses in the tourism, financial services and wholesale and retail trade; yes, some gambling entrepreneurs raking in millions in the wake of their new found legitimacy. A few others have close ties to the government and get lucrative contracts from it. Life is good for them but for the rest of The Bahamas the struggle is real, very real.
What will we do or can we do to end this bleeding? Surely we cannot continue this way. If we do the social decline that we are already seeing will worsen. The drain of our national talent to other countries will accelerate. The poverty in our nation will deepen and soon we will not merely be a shadow of ourselves. We will be a shadow period.
Generations of Bahamians will know nothing but poverty and frustration and loss. Our politics will become more tribal, perhaps even venturing into violence. Our businesses will become more oligopolistic with greed being the core value of operation more than it is today. Our society will be more pessimistic, making national unity impossible. If this happens, who would want to be here?
Probably not even the immigrants who came here to have a better life. This may not happen in our time but it will happen in time and it will be our legacy to our children, grandchildren and their children. What can we do? What shall we do? How do we stop this economic bleeding? How do we create new days of plenty? Next week, we will look at possible answers to these questions.
o Zhivargo Laing is a Bahamian economic consultant and former Cabinet minister who represented the Marco City constituency in the House of Assembly.
Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian
