On Tuesday, 13th July, Hon. Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit presented a 440.3 million dollar budget to parliament when parliament met on that day. In his budget address themed, “Pathways to a Higher Level”, the Finance Minister outlined his reasons for his choosing of the theme based on three points.
 Hon. Prime Minister,
Roosevelt Skerrit
“Let me at the outset make three basic points, three basic truths perhaps, about taking our country to the next level. The first is that it is an objective that we all share and one that we should all wish to achieve, even if there may be different ideas about how we might get there. The second is that we are all very clear as to what we mean by the next level. It is a term that reflects the vision and aspirations of all of us, for an enhanced standard and quality of life as identified through all those developments, material and non-material, that are important to our happiness. The third basic truth about taking us to the next level is that it calls for the cooperation and collaboration of all Dominicans. It is not something that Government can do alone. Building the New Dominica requires the cooperation and participation of all Dominicans at home and abroad, and all friends and well-wishers.”
The Prime Minister, in explaining what he meant by the ‘New Dominica’ said that he was talking about a new Dominica where the Growth and Social Protection Strategy will take center stage and will result in a different outlook for Dominica. According to the Prime Minister, this new outlook will manifest in every sector in Dominica including the agricultural and tourism sectors.
“In agriculture the next level will find us in a situation of greatly increased market-driven production of quality commodities, able to be transported on a regular and reliable basis, to niche markets in the Caribbean and beyond.
In tourism, our considerable efforts to attract internationally branded and well known boutique hotels to Dominica, will have borne fruit. Such hotels will not only employ well-trained Dominicans, but will provide accommodation which will appeal to international travellers in settings of natural splendour.
Our call centres currently employ hundreds of young persons, but the next level will see established in our island, centres doing offshore data management and employing more highly skilled Dominicans.
Our physical infrastructure, more particularly our major roads, will be developed to international standards and our secondary roads, including feeder roads and farm access roads, will be developed and maintained to a high level and quality. Night-landing facilities at Melville Hall airport will enable Dominica to fully integrate into the airline schedules, in a way that makes maximum use of the airport enhancement, leading to increased domestic and tourist traffic.
Our social infrastructure will have improved correspondingly – the quality of education at all levels will have improved by leaps, as will the access of our people to opportunities for enhancement of their professional and technical abilities, as we pursue our objective of ensuring at least one university graduate in every household.
The proposed new general hospital, the fourth pillar project under our cooperation arrangement with the People’s Republic of China will create a facility which will enable us to offer a new range of medical interventions at a level which will drastically reduce the need for Dominicans to seek medical attention overseas.
The private sector will be expected to play a much larger role in job creation – our efforts to encourage small business will play a role in this, as will the establishment of businesses through the proactive intervention and facilitation of the AID Bank.”
The Prime Minister stated that the principles which will guide the fiscal stance for the 2010/2011 financial year will be drawn from the Growth and Social Protection Strategy from that of the previous year.
“ As we begin a new term in Government, the economic management policy goals of the Government, continue to be as stated in the Growth and Social Protection Strategy, that is:
- To maintaining as the centrepiece of fiscal management, a primary surplus target of 3 percent of GDP
- To continue on the path of maintaining the sustainability of the country’s fiscal position
- To continue working towards increasing sustainability of the level of the national debt
- Continued strengthening of the management of the public finances
- To continue to create the conditions for achieving and sustaining economic growth levels at an average of 3.0% per annum.
Out of the 440.3 million dollars, it expected that the Ministry of Public Works, Energy and Ports will receive the largest allocation of the capital budget in the amount of $69.7 million or 49.6 percent of the total capital budget. Most of which will go towards the commencement of construction works on Lot 2 of the Roseau-to- Melville Hall Road, the segment from Pond Cassé to Melville Hall, and on the Pointe Michel Sea Defence Project.
One of the highlight’s of this year’s budget is a new housing initiative.
“I wish to take this opportunity, to announce yet another major initiative in housing. I wish to announce a new mortgage facility to be administered by the AID Bank to be funded through Petro Caribe. This is a facility in the amount of $10 million for the construction of new houses.
This additional dimension to Government’s housing revolution follows on from the many initiatives this Government has taken to increase the housing stock in the country, including the Venezuelan-funded line of credit to the AID Bank of $5.0 million and the $7.0 million made available to the Government Housing Loans Board, which targeted individuals in the lower income bracket. This line of credit as successfully executed and resulted in 47 individuals receiving benefits from the AID Bank facility and 49 from the GHLB.”
More of the Prime Minister’s address can be found under speeches and addresses on the Government’s website at http://www.dominica.gov.dm/cms/index.php?q=node/1142
The opposition United Workers Party elected to boycott this seating of the house. |
