NASSAU, BAHAMAS — It is time for government to “dust off” the national development plan and implement some of the strategies put forward to better position The Bahamas for the next 40 years, according to a well-known financial services executive.
Sean Longley, the Leno Group of Companies founder told Eyewitness News that the government must aggressively target new foreign direct investment (FDI) while also encouraging local entrepreneurship.
“This would be a good time to dust off The National Strategic Plan that was developed some four years ago,” he said.
“Implement some of the strategies discussed to put the Bahamas in a much better position in the next 40 years.”
Labeled ‘Vision 2040’, the plan crafted under the former Christie administration represented the first ever co-ordinated effort to plan the Bahamas’ development in a systematic manner using empirical data and analyses with collaboration from the private sector and civil society.
The plan set out a road map with goals and objectives for the Bahamas to attain. Vision 2040 focuses on four main policy pillars – the economy, governance, social policy and the environment, both natural and built.
Longley said: “The Government also needs to be aggressive to look to bring in new foreign direct investment (excluding hotels) that would further diversify the country. Encourage Bahamians to become entrepreneurs and give them the same concessions given to foreigners.”
Assessing the Bahamian capital markets, Longley said: “In the short term I expect that the Bahamian capital markets will slow down if not come to a standstill. The activity that may be seen would be individuals trying to liquidate their holdings to generate cash to assist with their day to day needs as the unemployment rate continue to rise. With the Central Bank listing Government Bonds to the Exchange there will be some activity taking place as Investment Funds, Pension Funds, Insurance Companies look to take advantage of the ease of trading.”
He said: “In the long term as the economy beings to resemble what we know it to be and as jobs start to come back, I expect the level of activity to pick up as I believe individuals will look to save more and they will use the exchange to provide higher yields as opposed to the banks. Coming out of this pandemic I foresee the savings rate in our country increase substantially as individuals will not want to be “caught with their pants down” in the event of another crisis.”
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