A time for growing in courage and purpose

Observer column published MON 6 July 2020

by Jean Lowrie-Chin

I am here tapping out this column at my father’s desk where he sat working in his wheelchair wearing periscope-type glasses, because his neck was fixed by ankylosing spondylitis, an extreme form or arthritis. Brave ex-RAF man that he was, he hardly spoke of his painful condition, which dogged him as he worked and studied day after day, night after night to become a chartered accountant. He had his four children to see through school and he would not stop until the youngest was accepted at university.

I am sharing Dad’s story because although these Covid times are painful and uncomfortable, we should see them as a challenge to grow in courage and purpose. A report from the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has shaken us up: it puts Jamaica at the top of the list for developing countries to suffer from tourism losses – they forecast an 11 percent of our GDP. How will we prove them wrong?  Clearly, we must find ways to attract visitors while safeguarding them and our tourism workers. Indications are that flights into the Montego Bay Donald Sangster Airport are on the increase, with strict adherence to an arrival protocol.

Our restaurants were able to reopen last Thursday. A JIS report from Alecia Smith noted, “Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, emphasised that occupancy ‘must not exceed 50 per cent of [the facility’s] capacity at any one point in time… No more than four persons can be seated at a table. There must be at least six feet of space between tables, and no table must be joined to facilitate large groups’.”

Representatives of the entertainment industry demonstrated outside Emancipation Park last week as they demanded the reopening of their activities.  Bearing in mind a study that had shown that Jamaicans spend most of their money on food and entertainment, one can imagine the Covid fallout for the entertainment fraternity. Dahlia Harris has introduced pay-per-view of her play on Instagram – we should check it out and support.

Besides these traditional revenue earners, we must focus on agriculture.  One of the sunniest spots during this pandemic are photos and videos of the activities at Michael Lee-Chin’s 3,000-acre mega farm, part of the former Innswood Estates in St Catherine. There was a traffic jam in New York when Jamaica’s first shipment of mangoes arrived there a few weeks ago. Gifts of Jamaican coffee, whether Blue Mountain or high mountain are always welcome. Café Blue is now using our excellent cocoa to produce a new line of chocolate products and Jamaican ginger is regarded as the world’s finest. Canned ackee and callaloo are winners and our sauces and jellies have a depth of flavour that is unparalleled. 

Hundreds of students have now graduated from high school and university, full of hope and promise. Meanwhile, our frontline workers are dropping down from exhaustion, working double and triple shifts. We look to management in various fields of endeavour to mainstream new graduates, giving them work opportunities while relieving frontline stress. We look to management in various fields of endeavour to mainstream new graduates, giving them work opportunities while relieving frontline stress, and to support new initiatives to counter threats to our economy.