Every living person, especially in the islands, is concerned about the sustainability and their survival. And despite the growing number of academics in our society, there is still a large percentage of unskilled, uneducated and unmotivated persons.
The brain drain over the years has happened because despite what job you do overseas, the pay or returns seem to be more attractive. So, that tells us that people do not want to be classified as common laborers despite their unskilled nature.
Jobs over the last few years have remained as waitresses, store attendants, security guards, self-made persons and dealers in the black market.
In fact, the black market seems the most attractive because it’s never about your skill or qualifications, but more about whether you are prepared to take a chance, as getting caught is at a low percentage due to our legal and law modules.
For the average person to fit in without needing credentials, there must be a new thrust in skills development, productivity and sustainability to improve their livelihood. The government sectors are definitely behind as it relates to innovative ways to engage people, especially the under-employed.
Every thing we wear, use or need is of a foreign origin — in other words, we buy to get or to gain, but do not make or create, because the means and opportunities have not been inculcated in our culture or way of life.
Take for instance our women, who are contented to wear false hair to beautify themselves, but every head gear or wig is imported from some source and not made locally. At carnival too, all costumes come from elsewhere; and most of our furniture is now plastic, as it is the cheaper way to go, but no availability of locally made furniture because of our new values and unavailability of the imported goods at a moderate cost.
Every screw, every nail, every wrap and packaging, just name the item and we will realize we do not make or produce it, because we are into readymade and most businesses survive on imported items.
Our foods, our clothing, our gadget are all necessary, but not made or created locally, so because of unavailability, we have to deal with the buying to gain or get. We do not treasure local-made items because, in some cases, the quality is sub-standard, with no long-term guarantees.
For our people to develop, we need a totally new approach as it relates to local manufacturing and localising our needs. Such products like cannabis and related drugs that are in great local demand should not have to be imported. But due to red tape and legal ramifications, the import trade flourishes.
Years ago we produced cigarettes — still a product many are hooked on, but you have to import to keep that market alive. Our musicians can only survive seasonally or within the hotel sector or on cruise ships because nobody wants to pay an extra penny to hear home-grown talent.
Our nurses should not have to migrate if there are certified upgrades in that profession.
The government and the opposition have to take all that into consideration when they think of putting people first — national pride comes from profiting from the system. But people steal or rip-off if they feel unable to get legitimately.
We must explore doing more for ourselves and not letting merchants take the lead in the imported culture.
Education must go beyond the schools, factories of all types must emerge. We have to become satisfied that going legitimate is worthy of our involvement. We have to start to believe that anything another can do, we can do it too.
So it’s time to see the big picture and turn the tides of development.
The same way some African countries are trying to gain control of their own resources and stop the exploration and exploitation by other countries, we too must find ways to do for us and create for us and profit from what we do.
The age of selling our raw materials to others and buying it back on our shelves must change. We want to live the international way, so we must go international to secure our local resources and indiginus way of life.
We must change to realize a change. We must think outside the box. We have to get everybody involved in different ways.
We have to become Black again. We have to believe in our selves and be less dependent on others or on government to provide. We need wide-scale opportunities to become more creative and productive.