The Tribune

Once again University of The Bahamas professor Dr Nicolette Bethel has me scratching my head wondering at her interpretation of our history and how confused our young students must be.

 Her latest argument was reported on the Eyewitness News website and had me wringing my hands and slowly counting to 10. She stated at a recent forum:

“One of the things COVID-19 has shown us is exactly how unequal our country is, how different our country is and how poor we are as individuals and government of understanding the whole. …

“New Providence is under two percent of the land mass and yes we have 70 percent of the population but that is because we haven’t developed anywhere else. We haven’t developed the whole. We haven’t focused on the whole. That fragmentation we have to reckon with.”

The Eyewitness News report continued: “Bethel noted that with various islands being subjected to different lockdowns and COVID-19 orders, the plight of the Family Islands has now been brought to the forefront.”

It reported Bethel as saying: “It’s very difficult to have a collective sense of integrity when [when] the government hasn’t been thinking about the citizenry of as the whole.

“When one does public one should be making the policy with the view for the public good but that has not generally been the culture of governments in The Bahamas for a generation.

“We have witnessed governments cede their responsibility to the public through privatisation, foreign direct investment and all sort of things. Government has not been the primary actor to providing services to the citizenry for 30 years. This has forced government to look at the Bahamian public.”

The story continued:

“According to Bethel, in the post-COVID-19 Bahamas, focus must be placed on the country as a whole and not just New Providence or Grand Bahama and Abaco.”

This, to me, is the same dismissal of the country’s achievements that she has offered on other occasions. She continues to depreciate and downplay the many advancements made by The Bahamas as a developing nation.

This is a troubling condition for any academic and does a disservice to those who have poured their lifeblood and energy into developing the country including the Family Islands.

There is inequality in the country including economic and social inequality. But the country has made tremendous progress since majority rule including universal education from primary to high school. Prior to majority rule most Bahamians ended their education at the equivalent of grade seven.

Of course there is much work to be done to improve education in the government-operated system, but the system has made progress, including huge investments throughout the archipelago during Hubert Ingraham’s tenure as head of government.

The Hubert Minnis Administration has broadened access to university education by offering free tuition for qualifying students at UB and BTVI, a groundbreaking achievement.

Former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham, who grew up in Abaco, dedicated much of his time as prime minister to the development of the Family Islands, pouring an extraordinary amount of resources into roads, docks, upgrades to airports, potable water, electrical generation and supply and many health facilities including clinics.

Mr Ingraham used to tell visitors to Ragged Island not to let people in Nassau know the millions the government spent to upgrade the tarmac, runway and roads on the southern island with a population of under 100. The upgrade was to provide for a base for the Royal Bahamas Defence Force.

Ragged Island is now a test case for the installation of solar power, at considerable expense. Basic public infrastructure is being rebuilt at the cost of millions in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma.

Former Barbados Prime Minister Owen Arthur noted to Ingraham after visiting Abaco that the island had certain infrastructure that was more advanced than a number of Caribbean countries. Ingraham also instituted local government to help in the development of the Family Islands.

Dr Bethel stated: “Focus must be placed on the country as a whole and not just New Providence or Grand Bahama and Abaco.” It is curious she upended her argument with this comment.

She acknowledges that the three most populous island are the most developed precisely because this is where the vast majority of Bahamians live. Perhaps Dr Bethel thinks the country should build a $100 million dollar airport on Crooked Island.

Dr Bethel seems unaware of the cost of development. Privatisation and foreign direct investment are essential for national development for a country like The Bahamas with limited resources and the need to replicate basic services in an expansive archipelago.

The privatisation of the hotels once owned by the Government of The Bahamas removed a tremendous financial burden on the country.

Moreover public/private partnerships are critical for national development, including the development of a residential dorm at UB, which will reap financial benefits for the University. By privatising certain entities governments can use those funds for other essential purposes.

Successful countries grow and develop through foreign direct investment (FDI). One of the largest recipients of FDI is the United States. China, India, Singapore and many countries in Africa have made tremendous gains and lifted scores of people out of poverty because of FDI.

Foreign investment is often a measure of the attractiveness of a country for investments. Apparently this is something to be avoided to Dr Bethel’s eyes.

At last count, we had some 1.7 million small foreign direct investors called stopover tourists who invested on average $1,500 per person. Why? Because they found The Bahamas an attractive place for their vacation investments.

The government has not ceded responsibility. Responsible and sensible government utilise FDI and privatisation as a means of deriving funds especially for capital projects and as a means of wealth and job-creation.

Yes, we must do all that we can to reduce income inequality and we must find ways to reduce the cost of living. Inequality may be reduced through FDI.

Both LPIA and the redevelopment of the Port of Nassau will enhance our tourism product. The latter is issuing shares for Bahamians and will provide jobs and wealth-creation, with many of the funds coming from private enterprise and FDI.

Developing The Bahamas archipelago is very expensive. We need to develop more of our islands with more infrastructure and Bahamians returning to the Family Islands. There is still much work to be done and sometimes people in New Providence can be too Nassau-centric.

But it is incorrect to suggest governments have not thought of the citizenry as a whole, especially as most citizens live on New Providence, Grand Bahama and Abaco.

At great expense the Bahamas government replicates basic services, including schools on cays and islands throughout the country. A visitor to Long Cay in the southern Bahamas quickly learns that the cay with a population of approximately 30 or so also has a school and other government infrastructure.

Perhaps to help bring our country closer together Dr Bethel might consider a teaching assignment at the Long Cay All Age School, where she can research the economics of development and write about the hundreds and hundreds of millions successive government have invested in our family of islands.