Barbados in worse economic position, says opposition leader

Barbados opposition leader, Owen Arthur, has painted a gloomy picture of the state of the country’s economy.

Speaking at the Budget presentation on Monday, Arthur said that, if the country is faced with a severe economic and financial crisis before the budget presentation, it will continue to do so or even get worse after the estimates are put into effect.
The former prime minister said that Barbados economy, which was the second best in the region, is now one of the poorest -- below Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Belize, ECU and Bahamas.

He added that the December report indicated that not only has Barbados' fiscal position, as measured by the overall fiscal deficit, deteriorated significantly but, he said, it has also dropped significantly in comparison to the rest of the region.

The Barbados Advocate reported that Arthur said that there are signs of deterioration in the country's foreign exchange earning capabilities, and also faced with an unsustainable fiscal situation that "is already beginning to erode the foundations of the stability of the Barbados economy."

Arthur contended that, while the Barbadian economy continues to deteriorate, other Caribbean countries facing the same situation are finding ways to consolidate and improve their situation.

He called for more vision on the part of the administration.