Go Lean…Caribbean

Go Lean Commentary

Be careful what you wish for; it just might come true. – Old Adage

This statement is a reporting of facts. In fact, this statement can be defined as a law. The law of the socio-economic dynamic. The definition of socio-economics (or social economics) is the social science that studies how economic activity affects and is shaped by social processes. In general it analyzes how societies progress, stagnate, or regress because of the local, regional or global economy.

This commentary is the 1st of a 3-part series; the other considerations relate to …

2. the high suicide rate among the elderly, and …

3. the economic impact studies to justify public financing of private enterprises.

Over the past half century, the economic structures of many North American and Western European countries have changed dramatically, a mostly upward trajectory (growth) with occasional dips (recessions). During this same past half century, the economics of many Caribbean countries have also changed dramatically, but mostly towards poor or regressive conditions. This fact has forced a brain drain among many of the member-states’ professional classes.

This [brain drain] reality is a socio-economic dynamic; it was the motivation for the publishing of the book Go Lean…Caribbean in the first place. It describes the current assessments of the region and then communicates a vision to elevate the Caribbean’s 30 member-states and 42 million people into a Single Market economy. The goal is to create 2.2 million new jobs and grow the region to $800 Billion GDP. This vision is embedded in the following statements in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Page 13) for these member-states:

xix. Whereas our legacy in recent times is one of societal abandonment, it is imperative that incentives and encouragement be put in place to first dissuade the human flight, and then entice and welcome the return of our Diaspora back to our shores. This repatriation should be effected with the appropriate guards so as not to imperil the lives and securities of the repatriated citizens or the communities they inhabit. The right of repatriation is to be extended to any natural born citizens despite any previous naturalization to foreign sovereignties.

xx. Whereas the results of our decades of migration created a vibrant Diaspora in foreign lands, the Federation must organize interactions with this population into structured markets. Thus allowing foreign consumption of domestic products, services and media, which is a positive trade impact. These economic activities must not be exploited by others’ profiteering but rather harnessed by Federation resources for efficient repatriations.

xxi. Whereas the preparation of our labor force can foster opportunities and dictate economic progress for current and future generations, the Federation must ensure that educational and job training opportunities are fully optimized for all residents of all member-states, with no partiality towards any gender or ethnic group. The Federation must recognize and facilitate excellence in many different fields of endeavor, including sciences, languages, arts, music and sports. This responsibility should be executed without incurring the risks of further human flight, as has been the past history.

xxiv.  Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

xxv.  Whereas the legacy of international democracies had been imperiled due to a global financial crisis, the structure of the Federation must allow for financial stability and assurance of the Federation’s institutions. To mandate the economic vibrancy of the region, monetary and fiscal controls and policies must be incorporated as proactive and reactive measures. These measures must address threats against the financial integrity of the Federation and of the member-states.

Another dynamic has been the advancement and assimilation of technology. This acknowledgement was also pronounced in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Page 14):

xxvii. Whereas the region has endured a spectator status during the Industrial Revolution, we cannot stand on the sidelines of this new economy, the Information Revolution. Rather, the Federation must embrace all the tenets of Internet Communications Technology (ICT) to serve as an equalizing element in competition with the rest of the world. The Federation must bridge the digital divide and promote the community ethos that research/development is valuable and must be promoted and incentivized for adoption.

As these changes took hold of society, the social effects on people, families, traditions, habits and values have been drastic; a lot has changed over the past decades. How can this be conveyed graphically? The following – funny and enlightening illustrations – give an accurate depiction of society’s changes – then and now.

16 Illustrations That Perfectly Show How Society Has Changed

(Source: Brain Jet Daily Cerebral Stream – Ad-supported Online Site – Retrieved July 15, 2015 from: http://www.brainjet.com/random/19913/then-and-now-16-illustrations-that-perfectly-show-how-society-has-changed#slide/1)

Change is afoot!

Among the changes – to people, families, traditions, habits and values – is the socio-economic effects of the Caribbean brain drain, estimated at 70%. This is a crisis!

This is a consistent theme in the Go Lean book; it describes “push and pull” of societal change; it posits that life in North American and Western European countries serve as a “pull” factor for many Caribbean communities. Plus, the failing economic conditions further “push” many citizens away. To alleviate this crisis, there is the need to counter-defend with purposeful change of our own for the region. The Go Lean book serves as a roadmap to elevate the economics of the region; and it clearly describes the impact on other societal engines: security and governance. Everyone feels the change; it is like a moving locomotive, “you can’t stop the beat; you can’t stop the motion of the ocean”. This is also the moving imagery depicted in the VIDEO below.

The Go Lean roadmap is a planning tool for the strategic, tactical, and operational empowerments that needs to be implemented to keep pace with the world’s Agents of Change: Technology, Aging Diaspora, Globalization and “Climate Change”. The purpose of the book therefore is to position the region at the corner of preparation and opportunity, so as to benefit from change. We have many needs – economic, security and governance – to avert this societal abandonment trend. The book / roadmap is for the introduction and implementation of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU), a super-national institution with federal powers to forge change in the Caribbean community. One mission is to dissuade further human flight/brain drain. (An additional mission is to incentivize the repatriation of the Caribbean Diaspora).

The following details from the book Go Lean … Caribbean are the assessments, community ethos, strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies prescribed to manifest the elevation of Caribbean economy, society and life:

Many Caribbean citizens love their homeland but the realities of flawed economics will always cause a brain drain. This flight-abandonment creates the need for a societal reboot in the economics, security and governing engines. This is the quest of the Go Lean…Caribbean roadmap, to reboot these societal engines; employing best-practices and better strategies, tactics and implementations to impact its prime directives; identified with the following 3 statements:

• Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
• Establishment of a security apparatus to protect the resultant economic engines and mitigate challenges/threats to ensure public safety for the region’s stakeholders.
• Improvement of Caribbean governance, including a separation-of-powers with member-states, to support these engines.

The same as the foregoing illustrations, there are many Go Lean blog commentaries that have detailed the anatomy of change in the Caribbean. Our changes – to systems, people and institutions – have not always been positive, or beneficial. Here is a sample of related commentaries, grouped by the recognizable categories in the illustrations:

• Transforming Change
• Internet & Communications Technology
• Toleration of Minority Classes

Transforming Change

Internet & Communications Technology

Toleration of Minority Classes

There are many societal defects in the Caribbean region; we need effective strategies, tactics and implementation to effect turn-around.

The needs of Caribbean community cannot be casually dismissed. As crises ensue, people respond; they make choices: fight or flight.

We must do better than our prior track record. We can “rock with the changes” in society. Though this effort is not easy, rather heavy-lifting, the adoption and application of best-practices can yield beneficial results – the returns are worth the investment.

“You can’t stop a locomotive as it comes speeding down the track; yesterday is history and it’s never coming back. But tomorrow is a brand new day and it doesn’t know White or Black” – see VIDEO in the Appendix below.

This is the goal of the Go Lean roadmap: to help make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play. 🙂

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

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Appendix VIDEO – You Can’t Stop The Beat! – https://youtu.be/ovLKUoMqPSg

A VIDEO of the finale of the movie Hairspray (2007) … ENJOY Edna & Tracy Turnblad, Link Larkin, Penny Pingleton, Velma & Amber Von Tussle, Motormouth Maybelle, Corny Collins and other characters, as they drive home the important moral lesson of accepting change.