Making opportunities

National Hero Marcus Mosiah Garvey summarized our long-established practice when he said; “Take advantage of every opportunity; where there is none, make it for yourself.”

After slavery was abolished, our ancestors who had been forcibly uprooted from their country and families, found themselves without any opportunities.  For whereas those who had enslaved them for years received monetary compensation for losing free labor, most who had labored free, got nothing, no land, no money nothing to start their free life with.

Some chose to go back to work for the wicked slave masters just to get food to survive. Others fled to unpopulated areas in the hills to find a piece of land on which to eke out a living. The really courageous ones found whatever could use to sail away from the island to shores unknown.

I say really courageous as they never knew where they would end up or even arrive alive at any place, but to them, even death was better than going back to work for those monsters.

They therefore took the ultimate sacrifice to try and make opportunities for themselves.

We have no idea how many of the freed slaves who embarked on those dangerous treks arrived alive anywhere. We know a large number found their way to nearby Cuba which was getting wealthier every day as a sugar and rum manufacturing hub. Some of us can still find our relatives in provinces such as Santiago De Cuba, Holguin, and Guantanamo Bay.

Work on the construction of the Panama Canal in 1881 was a next big opportunity for poverty-stricken Jamaicans. Thousands died on that project. In fact, it was suspended for many years because of the high mortality rate. However, among those who survived, places like Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica and even some countries in South America were where they later pursued opportunities.

The next big migration of Jamaicans came during the world wars, whether it was to fight for the former slave owing country or later, to provide cheap labor to rebuild their economy.

In short, marginalized Jamaicans have never been shy about seeking opportunities abroad where none existed at home. So, when countries such as Canada and the USA started to make migration easier, thousands trekked there too. Ever heard of the ‘farm work’ programs? Thousands never returned too!

Things took a different turn in the 1970’s though. For it was the threat of communism with all its ills, that caused mostly already-educated Jamaicans who never lacked opportunities at home as well as members of the affluent middle class to seek out countries where their safety and freedoms would not be in jeopardy.

That was when what is described as the real brain drain began.

And it has never ceased for as communication becomes better, individuals are finding that their skills and training can attract far bigger bucks in first world countries than they can earn at home.

Whatever the reasons, the fact is there are either about the same number of or even more Jamaicans living abroad as live on the island.

With a history like ours, it should surprise no one that the latest Fund for Peace data, shows Jamaica being second in the world in terms of migration. (See the table of the top 5 below.)

Countries	Human flight and brain drain, 2022	Global rank	Available data
Samoa	10	1	2007 - 2022
Jamaica	9.1	2	2007 - 2022
Palestine	8.8	3	2021 - 2022
Micronesia	8.7	4	2007 - 2022
Somalia	8.7	5	2007 - 2022

In most instances however, those Jamaicans who left their homeland for whatever reason, have never turned their backs on their country, for the record of their massive remittances sent to help those who were left behind, is living testimony of their love.

And, remittances have even on occasion topped tourism as our leading foreign exchange earner, especially after that horrible Covid virus struck.

Last year, the Business Observer carried an analysis entitled ‘Remittances — Jamaica's economic lynchpin.”

It said in part; even though the World Bank predicted global remittances would fall by 22 per cent, with the Latin America and Caribbean region expected to record a 19.3 percent drop, Jamaica has defied this fate as remittance inflows grew by 25 per cent to US $1.53 billion ($221.1 billion) and net remittances went up by 30 per cent to US $1.41 billion from April to September 2020.”

Although so many Jamaicans have made opportunities for themselves overseas, it has never been a risk-free enterprise.

Actually, it takes a great deal of courage to leave friends and families to pursue opportunities in countries unknown, at times even starting at rock bottom in places where neither the language or culture are familiar.

That is why so many in the diaspora took umbrage at the imbecilic pronouncement by the Deputy Mayor of Montego Bay, Richard Vernon.

I don’t know the level of education that Vernon has or even if he has any knowledge of our history, but by calling those who sought opportunities abroad cowards, he exposed a level of ignorance that is unacceptable for a so-called leader!

 

The task ahead

 For those who think things are bad now in Jamaica now, in my book, the real tragedy lies ahead when the lack of foreign exchange earnings start to be felt. Naturally, without foreign exchange, imports on which we depend so much, are going to get super-expensive.  

So far, it is the poor and small business people who have been bearing the brunt of the severe economic measures put in place to try to keep that terrible virus under control. But soon, they will cause stress on thousands more.

In retrospect, it was bad that  Jamaica followed the western world and locked down the economy. I am not blaming the government, for so little was known about the virus in the initial stages, that we did not know where to turn. 

Taiwan however took a chance and won. They, with 25 million people, did not lock down but stringently monitored those who were positive and tracked who they came in contact with. By inflicting severe punishments on those who were quarantined, they inconvenienced around 1/4 million of their population for the benefit of the other 24.5 million. And guess what, their economy remained open and  robust and only 10 people died! Sweden tried that the model but their success was not as outstanding. 

Where Jamaica fell down was in locking down the place for too long and being very lax in their enforcement of the rules that cut the spread of the virus. But what's new? Jamaica's problem with crime, justice, social issues and everything else for that matter, has always been, that we fall down in the area of enforcement. Look at how we are quick to prosecute the poor and dispossed, but the rich and well-heeled can break all the rules and have all the covid-spreading parties while the authorities look the other way. You notice too how Bolt has been singled out though? Poor fellow, with all his money and world-wide fame, he just can't make it into the Jamaican uptown circles! 

But I am not going there today. 

What really perturbs me is the fact of those who had little or no savings are now on the verge of starvation, due to the lockdown, which some would happily resurrect!. And I am sure, as savings vanish, many thouands more may soon join that group. For according to the World Bank, as a result of this virus, remittances around the world will fall by 20% this year. 

Already, a recent study conducted by UNICEF and the Caribbean Policy Research Institute (CAPRI) found that eight in every 10 households suffered income losses. On average, families lost 46 per cent of income, while lower-income households suffered a 49 per cent loss.This has caused a significiant number to have to get by on one , two or no meals per day. 

The well heeled who would keep the country locked down, need to spend a few seconds letting that sink in. Remember too, that more than 130,000 families across the island are already registered with PATH.

Even so, the Capri study found that some 10% did not think they could send their children back to school. How concerning must that be for all of us?

Also, what about the psychological illnesses and possible suicides that will occur from depression and hopelessness?

That is just the tip of our iceberg, for we have yet to see the impact of the fallout in tourism. And incidentially, while some people would like to blame tourists for the increase in covid cases in the island, that is not at all true. For it has been the yardies (living here and abroad) who have been ignoring the quarantine rules and preventative measures.

With the exuberance from the election, things appear to be going pretty well now, but are we really prepared to face the serious  challenges ahead?

I fear not, for according to an article in the Daily Gleaner of Septmber 11, 2020 ; "As Jamaica continues to lose millions of dollars to destinations such as Cancun and Riviera Maya, Mexico, some of the country’s top-producing travel agents have accused the Government of rejecting tourists. The agents, part of the Jamaica Travel Specialist group that boasts more than 8,000 members, vented their frustration on social media Thursday morning, warning that they would not send their clients here until the travel authorisation is done away with. The test is no big deal, so the authorisation process is what the determining factor is here. I can’t support a tourism industry that is doing everything they can to delay tourism. It’s pretty clear they are not wanting tourists,” Hannah Cote wrote online on Thursday morning.

Since August, two months after the island reopened its doors for tourism, complaints have not ceased. People who book both flights and accommodation have expressed difficulties getting landing approval here. Families have been separated as the system rejects some members and accepts others."

Can the country and those on the fringes really endure such a lackadasical approach to the economic well-being of the country much longer?