Dear Editor,
If a small island state has a single-pillar economy and there is a low likelihood of other pillars being added, the future planning for that island should be relatively easy.
Recently on social media an election candidate decried the fact that a new upmarket hotel was to be built because it would be resulting in St. Maarteners doing menial jobs like cooks, room attendants and service personnel in the future.
It is easy to share his ambition that it would be desirable if more advanced, interesting and higher-paid employment opportunities were to be available to St. Maarteners.
Is it realistic to hope that the SXM economy can significantly diversify into areas that include substantial numbers of higher-paid jobs?
Or is it more realistic to fear future scenarios where there has been no significant diversification and besides St. Maarteners having to do hotel jobs, the hotel industry is operating in outdated infrastructure due to investors having moved to more investment-friendly jurisdictions? Will the single-pillar economy have become a lesser economy due to much higher travel costs and our island having become a less attractive concrete jungle that will have lost the ability to compete with a host of more attractive environments?
The recent history of St. Maarten shows numerous “ideas” on diversification but little or no real contribution by diversified activities to the GDP [gross domestic product – Ed.].
Should incoming governments increase our commitment and improve our attention to the one-pillar tourist economy or should they gamble on future diversification that has not yet shown evidence of being executable?
The route chosen will make a substantial difference to the circumstances of our children .
Robbie Ferron
