The Collectivité’s plan to promote “staycations” and help the hospitality industry cope with the loss of business due to the COVID-19 pandemic (see Tuesday paper) may be something to consider for the Dutch side too. Government will invest about 500,000 euros in enticing residents to enjoy hotels, restaurants and attractions usually focussed on visitors from overseas.
The reasoning that islanders who would normally spend their summer holidays elsewhere might be less inclined to do so this year because of health concerns and restrictions as well as socioeconomic factors seems sensible enough. International leisure travel to the destination is likely to stay down for a while.
Some have already commented that the prices in question are too high for locals, but the whole idea is to provide vouchers, so it becomes affordable. Everybody loves a good deal and being able to offer such can make a big difference.
Although St. Maarten’s budget – certainly at the moment – has little title room for these kinds of initiatives, there is also the Dutch-sponsored Trust Fund. Two and a half years following the devastating passage of Hurricane Irma for which it was established, only a relatively small part of the available finances has been used.
The Netherlands remains firm in keeping the latter and the current coronavirus-related liquidity support loans with heavy conditions separated. However, all that money just basically sitting there is not doing anyone much good either.
It is high time parties involved, including the governments in The Hague and Philipsburg, the fund’s administrator the World Bank, the relevant Steering Committee and the National Recovery Programme Bureau (NRPB), adopt a more open-minded and creative approach towards the allocation of these means so they can actually benefit the still- and now again-suffering people. After all, wasn’t that the stated intention from the beginning?
