Jamaica’s debt inches closer to one trillion dollars

[Lazie]

Jamaica's debt has increased closer to one trillion dollars.

According to information released Wednesday by the Ministry of Finance, at the end of August, Jamaica owed its local and international creditors a total of $977 billion.

This represented an $8.5 billion increase over the figure reported at the end of July.

The depreciation of the Jamaican dollar against its US counterpart was a major contributor to the rise in the debt.

During the period the exchange rate for the American currency moved from $68.89 to nearly $70.

A breakdown of the debt stock showed Jamaica owed $431 million to its overseas creditors.

The domestic debt amounted to $546 billion.

The Bruce Golding-led administration has vowed to implement measures to put a halt to the debt which has increased by $38 billion since the start of the 2007/2008 financial year.

http://www.radiojamaica.com

[Lazie]

Gov’t reviews spending plans in light of financial constrain

The financial constraints facing the Bruce Golding-led administration has led one Ministry to review its spending.

Minister of Transport and Works, Mike Henry, says an expenditure audit is in progress at the Ministry.

This is aimed at assessing and prioritising future expenditure.

Mr. Henry says the review is being done so that critical programmes and projects can receive appropriate attention while effort is being made to deal decisively with loss-making operations.

The Ministry of Finance has been asked to participate in the expenditure audit.

http://www.radiojamaica.com/content/view/1979/52/

[Karl]

Jamaica's debt has increased closer to one trillion dollars.

According to information released Wednesday by the Ministry of Finance, at the end of August, Jamaica owed its local and international creditors a total of $977 billion.

This represented an $8.5 billion increase over the figure reported at the end of July.

The depreciation of the Jamaican dollar against its US counterpart was a major contributor to the rise in the debt.

During the period the exchange rate for the American currency moved from $68.89 to nearly $70.

A breakdown of the debt stock showed Jamaica owed $431 million to its overseas creditors.

The domestic debt amounted to $546 billion.

The Bruce Golding-led administration has vowed to implement measures to put a halt to the debt which has increased by $38 billion since the start of the 2007/2008 financial year.

http://www.radiojamaica.com

In 5 years just before next elections are due - if Brucie is to remain in office 1.5 to 2 trillion dollars...if less my guess Brucie will be gone.

Tilla hold this in the archives - I would like to see that answer stacks up against this. (Oil found in commercial quantities would not affect the prediction as production would have not had time to come up to speed.)

[Lazie]

In 5 years just before next elections are due - if Brucie is to remain in office 1.5 to 2 trillion dollars...if less my guess Brucie will be gone.

Tilla hold this in the archives - I would like to see that answer stacks up against this. (Oil found in commercial quantities would not affect the prediction as production would have not had time to come up to speed.)

Karl, no matter what the JLP does you and people of your thinking will still vote against them. Suh run along wid yuh prediction. Cyaan call yuh Nostradamus ... Mosiah have dat lock.

[Karl]

Karl, no matter what the JLP does you and people of your thinking will still vote against them. Suh run along wid yuh prediction. Cyaan call yuh Nostradamus ... Mosiah have dat lock.

Did you read what I wrote?
Did you notice that it was in line with my saying that $300 billion is needed NOW ...and, as brucie said he will make 'just about everything under the Sun better'...or, gave that impression ...he will ramp up the borrowing, spending....thus cost for debt serving, etc?!

Take into account our private sector is worth zilch where foreign exchange earnings is concern...and, the vast numbers unemployed...etc... an as wi seh, an Lulu nearli dead wen shi si hit, 'wallah!'

[Muadib]

Yuh bury yuh Pom-Poms dem ?

LOL !! WHOOOEEE !!

[Muadib]

I thought we were poised for takeoff ???

You are a clown.

[Gamma]

maybe he's burried deep within the pom pom?

[Mosiah]

maybe he's burried deep within the pom pom?

[Karl]

I thought we were poised for takeoff ???

You are a clown.

...and, where in what I said, it means we are not "poised for take off". It would be extremely foolish to believe that moving from where we are through forward to a massive improvement in infrastructure, massive spending on delivery of services - a social intervention as it were, move our vast unemployment numbers to tolerable levels...and, the attendant borrowing, ramping up efforts to attract increasing levels of foreign investment, increased earnings from our tourism product, ...cajoling our private sector entities to focus on import substitution and producing for export, etc. that would not be the start of taking off?

...well, I am thinking that in the short run if we have leaders bold enough to take on the task...the funds to 'seed' the process/the deficit will not be the approximately 1 trillion dollars it now is...but, closer to 1.5 - 2 trillion dollars in 5 years!

...and, in 5 years let us revist the archives? ...we shall see exactly where we are!!!!

[Muadib]

And why do we currently have a 1 Trillion dollar debt ?

[Karl]

And why do we currently have a 1 Trillion dollar debt ?

What type of Jamaica do we want?

So many were not born when there was safety, proverty...even abject proverty - a poverty where children went to bed hungry - slept through the night, woke up did chores and then went to school...a very many children attended school 4 days each week...Fridays being a day when many stayed home and helped parents.

A Jamaica where there was scandal in the village or town when a chicken was stolen...a time when rates of illiteracy make today's numbers if compared to today's rate of illiteracy would make yesterday's population giddy with glee!

A yesterday of the transistor radio... a yesterday of no television!

A yesterday when the passing of car would cause ceasation of going about one's business and cause gawking!

Life was hard...many had no shoes...many wore 'pitchy-patchy' clothes, no personal owned means of transport...in some parts of the country some had never seen a car.

It was not too long ago...the people were friendly...Negril had only single lane roads of broken stones and sand...for cars going in opposite direction to pass one had to reverse until there was a break where it was safe to drive off the road - tek bush - ...tranquil and nice!

I remember above where the Gleaner building currently sits, Fleet street, I could climb into a small tree and watch the aeroplanes land at Palisadoes.

1 trillion? The process is underway 'seeding' development!

When we gained the vote in 1944 and since then our rulers never foresaw this road we have taken. Consequently in the beginning there was no consistent forward planning looking at 50...25 years ahead.

There were no plans mapping out cities. There were no plans on future road needs. No plan on water supply requirements...etc. No plans that took into account education needs to care for a population such as we have. No plans for the current needed health services...and, on and on...

...but, we are where we are. Many now know what they would like to see - to awaken tomorrow and have the entire island a first world country...but, not with the first world imperfections. Our cities, we ache for, must be as the newest and best designed on earth...our roads/arterial road system perfect with each and every structure - bridges, drainage, etc. with that 25 -50 year future excess capacity...our water supply abundant and pure...every home with the lastest faucet and water gadget...the best of each and everything on the cutting edge of technology...in every area...well that is dream.

Man strives to be perfect...yet man knows there is no perfection...man hopes for perfection...and we strive...so it is in Jamaica...

...things gradually changed...the unemployed numbers grew...some roads where now 'barber-greened'...and many 'fixed' after every good shower of rain...

Come 1958 and there were suddenly places in secondary school of thousands who only a year earlier could never hope to enter those doors. That opening of the doors of secondary schools so joyously welcomed by so many of us would slowly...unseen it now seems...lead to an explosion in trained workers adding to the under-employed and unemployed...leading to an increased demand for jobs...and, the population grew...and so the demand of jobs grew...and so the pressures for services and strain on the infrastructure grew...

Oh yes, the various governments added to the roads, schools, etc...and they put their minds to creating greater efficencies from the 'paltry offerings' they had...and, the populations grew and demands for various services and goods grew...

...and oh yes, more and more of the population traveled outside of the island and TV...mmmm? Colour TV and various gadgets came in...more caar, more phone, more people...

Yup! we had started behind the 8th ball...and, we were slipping further and further behind...

...oh yes, we moved from the 'chicken thief' scandal to murder capital of the world...

... ...it seemed to just sneak up on us! ~ sigh ~ we never ever thought of this future...the now - now! ~ sigh ~ How did this happen

1 trillion dollars?

So now we are bursting at the seams with CRIME, UNDER-EMPLOYMENT, UNEMPLOYMENT, MAJORITY POOR ROADS, terrible SEWAGE SYSTEMS polluting our water supply (underground aquifiers and our seas), disposal of manufacturing waste polluting our (underground aquifiers and our seas), unplaned all-island way of slaming down houses and commercial building, manufacturing plants...other industrial complexes without proper means of disposal of sewage...yup that sewage that pollutes...and no thought of the needed support services - roads, water, sewage systems, etc.

...so our hospitals are overcrowded, health systems overtaxed...all other social services and services needed by government, business and the people all unable to keep up with demand...and those the systems and infrastructure that were put in, and the services built over time...are in the majority broken...yes, roads in towns need widening, the pipes for water and sewage need replacing, our thousands of miles of electrical transmission lines, telephone, telephone and cable lines need, on our hurricane prone island need to be buried...billions... hundred of billions of U$ dollars needed to upgrade...

1 trillion dollars?

...aaaaah that travel...all those TVs, all that internet...all that telephone/cellphone...all that interaction and interconnection with the world...aaaaaah all that yearning for what we see, hear about...

Yes 1st world yearnings! ...so on top of everything we have 1st world consumer tastes!

1 trillion dollars?

...will if the dream is all that we see for the country and each person...then...

...then...we are, as we are...so 1 more trillion dollars without at present a hope of in the near term producing to earn the quantity foreign exchange we need to transform the society to what we all want...1st World...

...but, when will we earn to make it 'real'?


1 trillion dollars will be a joke figure in 5 years!!!! ...and, you can take that to the bank! If that is not the reality Jamaica will be up in flames or under a dictatorship - murder then may not be by street thugs, but will then be sanctioned by the state!

So Brucie can either stay the course (growing the 1 trillion dollor debt towards 1.5 - 2 trillion as he lets the air out of the building social pressures and he gives the country time to await the awaking of the moribund private sector and or increased foreign investment or the miracle of the discovery of some natural product - oil? - to come along!) ...or snap his fingers and have our moribund private sector produce the miracle of exporting us into foreign exchange surpluses...or, introduce us to the 'state thug'!

[Muadib]

And our GDP as it relates to that 1 Trillion dollar debt ?

Why is our GDP so low relative to the 1 Trillion dollar debt ?

[Karl]

And our GDP as it relates to that 1 Trillion dollar debt ?

Why is our GDP so low relative to the 1 Trillion dollar debt ?

I leave you to give us your perspective in the context of where we are coming from - 1944 to present?

[Muadib]

1944 ?

Not into obfuscation of the issue..

Give us your astute analysis of the last 2 decades:

Debt
GDP
Economic Growth