The fall of government in the Netherlands (see related story) had some worried about a possible negative impact on helping the Dutch Caribbean countries cope with COVID-19 and its consequences. However, despite having a caretaker status, the outgoing Rutte Cabinet will keep handling the pandemic as an ongoing matter and main priority throughout the kingdom.
This means that, for example, vaccines, accompanying equipment and oversight will be provided as scheduled by the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment RIVM. Agreements made with the islands on liquidity loans that enable, among other things, income and payroll support needed due to the coronavirus-related crisis should also be unaffected.
As known, the latter is crucial to prevent more business closures, mass layoffs and widespread poverty on the islands. That would no doubt cause crime to rise, debilitating their already hard-hit tourism economies even further.
But the strict and far-reaching conditions for continued financial assistance, including the role of the Caribbean Body for Reform and Development COHO, can be expected to stay firmly on the table too. In other words, negotiations with Dutch State Secretary of Home Affairs and Raymond Knops and his team probably will not get any easier.
One must consider as well that elections for the Second Chamber of Parliament in The Hague have long been set for March. So, any attempts at major policy shifts especially when it comes to COVID-19 are not likely before a new legislature is in office and the majority appoints the next Council of Ministers.
It is realistically going to take until the end of this year before the dominant hospitality industries including cruise tourism of Curaçao, Aruba and St. Maarten recover to near 2019 levels, despite the vaccination process. In the meantime, like it or not, belt-tightening in both the private and public sectors will have to remain the order of the day.
