George: Do more to develop Tobago’s private sector

Chairman of the Tobago Business Chamber Martin George believes that not enough has been done to support the development of a strong private sector.

George made the comment as he weighed in on recent issues raised on the Tobago House of Assembly campaign trail as it relates to employment opportunities for Tobagonians.

He said: “We have seen over the years, the deliberate destruction of the private sector, the dismantling of all the processes and procedures which would support a viable and sustainable private sector in order to ensure that there is the continuing dependency upon the Tobago House of Assembly.”

According to George, the reliance on employment provided through the THA is unsustainable even in the short term.

“No country can survive where you have 60 per cent of the workforce being employed by the Government,” he said.

George said annual budgetary allocations for the THA show that 88 per cent of its budget is toward recurrent expenditure – a situation he said cannot continue.

He renewed the Chamber’s call for the revitalisation of direct foreign investment into Tobago through the repeal of the Foreign Investment Act, which he described as “the biggest obstacle” to ensuring this kind of investment.

He said the country is in desperate need of foreign exchange and archaic policies must be done away with.

By: Darlisa Ghouralal