The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A senior hotelier yesterday said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is “preaching to the choir” over its call to make increased COVID-19 vaccination rates The Bahamas’ leading economic policy priority.

Robert Sands, the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association’s (BHTA) president, told Tribune Business that the industry needs to be “fully insulated from the ravages” of COVID if it is to maintain its recovery momentum and drive the country’s post-pandemic revival.

Some 163,526 persons are now fully vaccinated out of a 400,000-strong population, and he agreed with the IMF’s assertion that The Bahamas needs to increase vaccination rates beyond the 40-50 percent mark to the 70-80 percent required for so-called “herd immunity”.

“There is no question that are particular thinking is aligned with that particular point,” Mr Sands said of the Fund’s Article IV statement, “that as the hotel industry continues to rebound we want to be insulated from the ravages of COVID going forward. One of the ways that we’ve said it can be done is by encouraging many more Bahamians to become fully vaccinated....

“We think the nation will be better off, and be more resilient, if we could get closer to herd immunity as a result of increased vaccinations. And having a much higher proportion of the population vaccinated puts the Government in a better position to remove some of the impediments that exist and open business even wider.

“We certainly appreciate that policy position. I think it’s a unanimous position. The Government agrees with it, the private sector agrees with it, and the IMF is preaching to the choir. We just have to keep at it, don’t give up at all in our fight for vaccination rates to be increased, and creating opportunities for people to become vaccinated. It has to continue, it is the safest and best route we can take.”

The IMF, in its Article IV statement on The Bahamas, urged the country to focus on increasing its COVID vaccination rates to protect against future outbreaks and disruption to the tourism-driven economy. “The policy priorities ahead are to safeguard the recovery, preserve debt sustainability and promote sustained and inclusive growth,” it added.

“First and foremost, this will require vaccinating the population as swiftly as possible. As the pandemic’s impact recedes, policies should focus on tackling long-standing challenges by improving the structure of revenues and spending, rebuilding fiscal space, and making the economy more resilient to the effects of climate change.....

“A re-intensification of the pandemic cannot be discarded. With about 40 percent of the population fully vaccinated, the emergence of new COVID-19 variants could prolong the pandemic and induce renewed economic disruptions. Alternatively, rising cases in source countries could dissuade travel and lead to a renewed decline in tourism.”

Assessing the deep scars inflicted by COVID-19, the IMF added: “The pandemic has deepened the country’s medium-term growth challenges and public finances have deteriorated. Education gaps have increased given the varied quality and access to remote learning. Private investment and employment will take time to recover.

“Additionally, the economy will have to contend with lasting effects of the pandemic on travel preferences as well as broader shifts in technology and climate risks. The new administration has pledged relief through tax cuts and increasing investment in resilient infrastructure, health and education. However, fiscal space has been eroded, limiting the room for manoevere to achieve these goals. Public debt is close to 100 percent of GDP, gross financing needs are high, and fiscal financing costs are elevated.”