The Minister of Finance
If it weren’t just another day in a strange kind of paradise, this would have been a Midnight Robber’s refrain about the havoc wreaked by loose tongues, Machiavellian bullies and the sufferation of citizens. We are under the yolk of home invaders. Reassure us of the country’s capability to pre-empt and prevent crime. Don’t tell us we are responsible for the solutions. But there is some respite from vexations to the spirit. The Minister of Finance has good reason to feel satisfied with his management of our finances.
True, the economic pundits and the many feeling the pressures of life may think differently about his ten-year financial stewardship. But there are tangibles other than the hard economic data. The well-being of citizens, a rather subjective concept, the ultimate concern of any government, encompasses the quality of life, income and educational levels, family relationships and stability, happiness and life satisfaction.
Opinions will differ on the state of the country. But one cannot deny the severe adversities the country faced during that ten-year period. The economic turbulence and decline generated by wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, the supply chain challenges, depressed goods and oil prices, plummeting natural gas prices, falling production, the whammy of COVID-19 that resulted in the shutdown of business countrywide, redefining business methods, health management, and poverty. It was a decade of navigating our financial affairs in a hostile environment. Capably. Still, there remained economic and social stability and the economy has rebounded after the pandemic, and even though there’s global uncertainty, the nation is on a growth path. Much of the progress is also attributable to the tenacity and resilience of our strong business sector.
Like several commentators, one may wish to criticise the Minister’s performance. But the renowned business guru Michael Porter believes “national prosperity is created, not inherited. It does not grow out of a country’s natural endowments, its labour pool, its interest rates, or its currency’s value, as classical economics insists.” The overriding feature of the success of countries and companies is vision, effectively dealing with the pressures and shocks of the day, innovativeness, and balancing priorities. Competitive homegrown businesses with the vision and strength to ride the torrents contribute to it. Porter asserts that “a nation’s competitiveness depends on the capacity of its industry to innovate and upgrade.”
The fact that this small and vulnerable country has remained socially and economically stable in the face of daunting external shocks and homegrown crime is not an accident. Stability cannot be achieved in a vacuum. There is a hand on the steering wheel. We are a politically polarised society, moulded by different experiences, education, aspirations, expectations, culture, and nurtured in different communities. We aren’t easily satisfied with whoever is in government. But we should pause and reflect on the gains.
According to the IMF report of May 2024, for the first time in a decade, T&T is on a trajectory of gradual and sustained economic recovery. GDP expanded in 2023, indicating the strong performance of the non-energy sector, inflation is below two per cent, there’s growth in bank credit, the financial system remains strong, and all the normal indicators of a country’s performance, including public expenditure and debt ratios, international reserve coverage, and current account surplus, appear reasonably good. The IMF underscored the need to maintain prudent macroeconomic policies to support the current exchange rate. The GDP per capita is highest among many small and medium-sized countries and even developed ones, as is life expectancy. The unemployment rate below five per cent is lower than for most countries. According to the UNDP 2022 Human Development Index, we are ranked 67 out of about 193 sovereign states.
Of course, governance and management performance issues are manifest in the high crime rate, and endemic problems in education, water and health. However, from an international perspective, T&T has grown substantially over the years. We have been exemplary in electoral democracy, which is why I cringe at calls for election observers. Substantial investments have gone into social protection for vulnerable citizens and human development. Whether funds are reaching the most vulnerable is questionable. Management of these funds, school management and discipline, gang-related and other kinds of violence, trafficking, corruption, the carbuncles of the criminal justice system, lack of accountability, and inefficiency in the public sector are painful reminders that money alone is not a solution. However, we have remained a financially stable and peaceful country.
In the eye of the storm, the Minister of Finance set out for shore. He landed us safely.
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