The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@ribunemedia.net

A leading private sector executive said yesterday it was “very concerning” that the Bahamas was losing two-thirds of its “brightest and best” to developed countries, with a major employer adding that it had done “more than our share” to provide opportunities for persons studying abroad.

Robert Myers, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation’s (BCCEC) chairman, told Tribune Business that a newly released Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) study, which noted that 61 per cent of tertiary-educated Bahamians had left this nation for jobs in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) member countries, raised productivity and labour supply issues.

He said: “That is very concerning. We have got considerable concerns with regards to business development and any affect on our gap growth. If businesses can’t find competent people they don’t expand, and business growth is limited.”

Mr Myers added: “A lot of people simply aren’t coming back home home because the opportunities are greater abroad. The economy lacks diversity. There is a higher pay scale and more upward mobility abroad. People are looking for the best opportunity.”

According to the IDB study, ‘Is there a Caribbean Sclerosis’, which attempts to determine why economic growth in the Bahamas and five other regional nations have been stagnated, almost two-thirds of college and university educated Bahamians have moved abroad to seek jobs in developed countries, costing this nation a sum equivalent to 4.4 per cent of its annual gross domestic product (GDP).

“Other countries are looking for these people. Their Immigration policies are designed to attract the brightest and best. Our Immigration policies are probably not the best. International countries are going after our brightest and best. We are not going after their brightest and best. We have an arduous process and, in many cases, are completely restrictive. We are not doing ourselves any favours by helping our brain drain,” said Mr Myers.

“Our policies restrict the best and brightest. We have more outflow than inflow. We support relaxing our Immigration policies. We are not really attracting the brightest and best foreigners.

“There is always the threat as to whether a person will get another work permit, so their employment is less stable. People are looking for stability and they are looking to build a career. There is probably a cultural aspect as well - the food, limited things to do. People can’t just go to see a Broadway show, for instance,” he added.

“Local businesses will hire locally if the talent is there. It’s less expensive than paying for a work permit and having to bring someone in and relocate their family. There is inherent risk there, and you would much rather hire locals if you could, simply because of the cost and risk associated with that.”

Mr Myers said Immigration and education reform were “high” on his list of priorities as BCCEC chairman, with the Chamber having already taken steps to tackle the latter through its Chamber Institute.

“Less educated people are not going to be starting business. Ee need to attract talent. We will continue to see GDP slide if we don’t attract more educated people,” he added.

Mr Myers also noted that there was constant migration of “bright minds” from the public to private sector, and vice-versa.

Robert Sands, Baha Mar’s senior vice-president of governmental and external affairs, told Tribune Business that the mega resort developers had made a commitment to reach out to Bahamians studying or working abroad.

“Baha Mar made commitments to reach out to Bahamians in university, those studying abroad in different areas, to match their passion with opportunities at Baha Mar once we open come December 2014,” Mr Sands said.

“We have had tremendous success in these areas. Some have already joined and others are in the process. We believe we have done more than enough to provide opportunities for those working abroad or studying abroad. We believe that certainly that has been our vision and mandate from the beginning.”