Holness urges all stakeholders to exercise patience in pandemic recovery process
/ Our Today
administrator
Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness says it is essential that all stakeholders exercise patience as countries begin to recover from the pandemic.
Speaking yesterday (January 27) at the ribbon cutting and grand re-opening of the new, re-imagined Sandals Royal Bahamian Spa Resort and Offshore Island in The Bahamas, Holness said it was important to note that, while the recovery has started, we have not yet recovered.
In this regard, he said: “The economy can only exist and grow in a society that is stable, that is looking out for the vulnerable, and people who have been affected, and their lives disrupted, by an event not of their making.”
In continuing, the prime minister said it cannot be fair for some people to recover while others are still struggling.
Meanwhile, Holness said, as difficult as the last two years have been, he was optimistic of a stronger recovery.
“I believe we are going to recover stronger and better than before the pandemic.”
Noting that a recent survey by the UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) suggests that international tourist arrivals could grow by 30 per cent to 78 per cent in 2022 compared to 2021, Holness said the Caribbean has the potential to recover even faster.
The prime minister said it was up to Caribbean countries to be agile and to embrace the post-COVID new normal.
He said: “We have to be nimble and constantly adjust and adapt to whatever the pandemic throws at us. What is clear, however, is that we have cast our eyes to moving beyond the pandemic. Almost two years into the pandemic, our populations know what to do to keep themselves safe. They know the protocols and they have access to vaccines. The balance of responsibility therefore now shifts from governments to individuals and families for their own protection.”
In closing, Holness said as the world slowly emerges from the grips of the pandemic, now is the time to invest to benefit from the inevitable rebound that is to come.
He congratulated Sandals Resorts International on the re-opening of the new, re-Imagined Sandals Royal Bahamian Spa Resort and Offshore Island, and encouraged their continued investment in the Caribbean and its people.
Comments