A nation's competitiveness depends on the capacity of its industry to innovate and upgrade. Companies gain advantage against the World's best competitors because of pressure and challenge. (Michael E. Porter - The Competitive Advantage of Nations.)

Long gone are the days when sectors, be they private or public can operate in a vacuum, given the present environment in which we live. We live in an era of globalization and technological change, which creates a challenge for all countries and enterprises especially in small developing economies and societies such as our own. Globalization and trade liberalization propose a world, which is essentially border-less. A world where goods, services, and people can move freely across borders, a world where "capital is highly mobile and where the most successful enterprises are those that can adjust and adapt to the changes that are taking place around them." The same rings true for the nation-state. The countries, which will grow from strength to strength both economically and socially are those who are able to strategically position themselves to benefit from the changes in the regional and international spheres.

It therefore becomes imperative that countries adopt a new philosophy in dealing with these inevitable changes. It now calls for a rethinking and realignment of national strategy in order to ensure that the state has an equal chance at advancement. No longer can we confine ourselves within our own world and expect that we will be protected from our competitors; that our local markets will be preserved for us. The walls have been removed and there are arrays of products, which are now available, the onus rests upon us to ensure that we maintain a high level of competitiveness and that our products represent the highest quality and standard, with identifiable distinctiveness.

One way this can be achieved, and the Antiguan and Barbudan product enhanced is through greater sectoral cooperation and the creation of strategic sectoral linkages. These linkages will span sectors and when created will undoubtedly bestow upon us many blessings. Now is the time for the Nation to begin to contemplate the development of a sustainable diversification strategy to face the obstacles and challenges that an international system based on knowledge creation, access to information and strategic alliances will pose. Now is the time for us to see the viable linkages that can be made between our agricultural sector and our tourism sector, between our agricultural sector and our manufacturing sector. It is time for us to expand our vision field and see that there is so much more that can make up our tourism package and not just sun, sea and sand. We have other marketable resources, it is important that "skills and competencies be aligned to the market. These in turn should be connected to a national planning framework and a regional framework that satisfies needs and demands on a national and regional basis and ultimately compete to satisfy global demands."

On Monday 12 July 2004, the governments of Antigua and Barbuda and Japan formalized arrangements for Japan's support for the construction of a Fisheries Centre in Antigua and Barbuda. The Minister of Tourism the Hon. Harold Lovell stated that, "it is the intention of this government to create linkages between the tourism sector and other sectors of the economy, especially agriculture and fisheries." This is a positive step in the direction in which the Nation definitely has to go in order to have a fighting and surviving chance both in the regional and international arenas. It is hoped that more of these linkages will be created and the entrepreneurial and innovative spirit which dwells within our state will be given the opportunity to thrive, for it is this spirit that will aid us in repositioning for the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME).

The CSME will be fully implemented by December 2005. Since its inception it has been the catalyst for the re-evaluation of systems and modes of operation across sectors and businesses within Antigua and Barbuda. The CSME has forced individuals to "think outside the box," and create new avenues towards greater productivity and the achievement of competitive advantage. It has been realized that to be most effective and reap the benefits that will redound from the provisions of the Revised Treaty that persons be endowed with greater vision and a spirit which looks beyond the here and now, and seeks to explore new horizons, scale higher mountains, for there are higher heights and deeper depths to which we can go. Only then will we have a real chance at being competitive in this dynamic global village.

Submitted by
Kariyma Baltimore
Antigua and Barbuda CSME Unit
Ministry of Finance and the Economy
Industry and Commerce Division