Prime Minister David Thompson????
In the final analysis an investor can choose to cut losses and halt production when an economy begins to decline.
Prime Minister David Thompson made this observation with respect to the decision by Butterfield Bank to "persevere and complete the job" of building the Somerley Banking Centre, at Worthing, Christ Church. He was delivering the feature address at the Centre’s official opening ceremony on Monday.??
"I know that a major undertaking like this is planned years in advance and that when drawing up the plans it is difficult to predict what will happen in the short to medium term, and certainly almost impossible to tell what will transpire in the long term in a rapidly changing environment," he noted. ??
The Prime Minister therefore commended Butterfield Bank for "adopting this counter cyclical investment in this current recession".
He added that notwithstanding what was happening world-wide, the bank was poised to become more competitive after the recession for a variety of reasons. "You have understood this recession as signalling a major transformation in the way we do business. ??You recognise that after this global financial and economic melt-down, there will be a general social and political shake-up.
"Several G20 countries will emerge as industrial powerhouses capable of producing and delivering goods and services on an unprecedented scale. Small nations like ours will need to identify niches and capitalise on them swiftly and efficiently," Mr. Thompson opined.
Stressing that in time, the only secure job could be the one we create for ourselves, he said that Barbados was highly committed to assisting more and more entrepreneurs to take the plunge.
"Your government has increased its support to organisations that provide training and support to potential entrepreneurs and we have been appealing to the private sector to aid the cause of economic enfranchisement," the Prime Minister stated.
He reiterated that the strategy was not only to diversify the economy, but also to create more opportunities for better educated people to find employment that was commensurate with their higher education and skills.?? ????
"I believe that with members like Butterfield, Team Barbados can overcome the temporary set-back we are experiencing and help us to make bigger steps towards our goal of creating a Better Barbados" Mr. Thompson maintained.