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Sister Omega
United Kingdom
2085 Posts |
 Posted - 01 Sep 2006 : 11:25:10
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Greetings Everyone,
With the elections campaigning well under albeit it muted. What I'd like to know is what measures will a future Gambia government put into place to ensure that Tourism actually starts to benefit the local Gambian economy? When will the monopoly of Gambian Experience be completely broken and how?
When will those in position of power in the Gambian Tourist Art and Culture be monitored and evaluated on their work performance and actually deliver outcomes that will decrease unemployment amongst Gambians and stop local small Gambian businesses being squeezed out of the tourist sector by big hotels. When will measures be put into place to combat both male and female prostitution, and use the money they receive to create jobs and training for the youth?
It would be refreshing to know how a future government will intend to put in place Ethical practices not just through sound bites cut and pasted from other peoples ideas but implement them through thoroughly thought out measurable targets and not just lip service. Why should Civil Servants have jobs for life in the West and not return home to see what effects their decisions are having on the ground if any but still get a salary to live in the west? How will a future government cut out inefficiency and get out deadwood that is helping to sink Gambia and not uplift her?
The poor in Gambia are suffering and they only get an opportunity every five years to voice their opinion and even that has been stifled so will it be the same old same old fat cats getting richer and poor people suffering or will their be a change when politicians remember that they are put into their positions to serve their country, not just their egos or bank accounts, friends and family but the whole nation from the poorest of the poor to the richest
I hope that Gambia's struggle to progress and enlightment continues and that those in real need start to reap some and even more of the benefits. Let's hope in this term people will be able to exhale and speak with honesty and integrity and be able to express themselves much more, so when the smiling coast smiles, it smiles with a genuine smile from the heart.
Peace
Sister Omega
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Peace
Sister Omega |
Edited by - Sister Omega on 01 Sep 2006 12:34:53 |
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Nyarikangbanna
United Kingdom
1382 Posts |
Posted - 01 Sep 2006 : 13:00:20
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Sister Omega. Thanks for your contribution. What is happening now is that the productive base of our economy is not attracting any investment from the state. We have a huge debt burden that we are busy paying -off but at the same time accruing more in the form of treasury bills and external borrowings from the big powers.
What the UDP/NRP have proposed, at least in relations to our internal debts, is that they will force the central bank to cut down on treasury bills so that the lending our commercial banks are doing in this area would be utilised in supporting and creating new business enterprises and encouraging youth entrepreneurship in all sectors of the economy including tourism. This would also lead to a drastic reduction on our debt burden for greater percentage of our internal borrowings is done through treasury bills but more importantly, it would be an employment opportunity magnet for our unemployed youths.
I am not a party agent and that being the case; I am not better positioned to answer all your concerns. Nevertheless, I will continue trying to know the position of the party I support in this race on all the issues you raised and you shall be informed accordingly.
Thanks for you love for the Gambia. Much appreciated.
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I do not oppose unity but I oppose dumb union. |
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jambo
3300 Posts |
Posted - 01 Sep 2006 : 19:24:55
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sisterm omega, you ask about tourism, does nayon know wha the arrangements are between gambian experience and tourism chiefs, how much longer is the monomply to run was it for a set period, or something.
they keep mentioning building up the tourism trade but make many mistakes.
i see the hotels but do not feel it gets to the local people. |
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taalibeh
Gambia
336 Posts |
Posted - 01 Sep 2006 : 20:28:01
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| The monopoly of Gambia Experience is predominantly due to the unattractive nature of the market for other players to engage into. Probably if developed other carriers would come in. |
Taalibeh |
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Sister Omega
United Kingdom
2085 Posts |
Posted - 01 Sep 2006 : 23:42:10
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| Taalibeh can you elaborate further? |
Peace
Sister Omega |
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Nyarikangbanna
United Kingdom
1382 Posts |
Posted - 02 Sep 2006 : 14:38:00
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Sister Omega, as promised, I got something for you. It explains the root cause of growing poverty in the Gambia and how the UDP/NRP intends to address the issue. Thanks and enjoy reading.
The APRC Governments’ difficulties in mobilizing revenue and financial resources for further investment pushed the regime to resort to over taxation and indebtedness. The nature of the debt stock of the country can be classified into domestic and foreign debts. Out of the D1, 460Million that was paid as interest and debt repayment in 2005 D723 Million is payment of interest on domestic debts. The payment of foreign interest amounted to 226 Million, foreign amortization or payment of principal amounted to D516 Million. The domestic debt has been growing because of the dependence of Government on Treasury Bills to finance growing budget deficit: for example in 2005, the budget deficit amounted to D855 Million. This budget deficit had been compounded by unauthorized expenditure. This mismanagement of the resources led to action by the IMF to suspend its financing of the poverty reduction strategy Paper Programme in 2003 until Government curbs unauthorized expenditure, audit the Central Bank externally and reduce the deficits and clear arrears in the payment of the interest on debts. In fact the donors punished The Gambia because of mis-governance by withholding 118 Million Dollars pledged in 2002 in the Geneva round. In other words, as a percentage of total recurrent expenditures interest payments (domestic and foreign) increased from 23.7% in 2001 to 28.1% in 2002 to 36.4% in 2003. In 2003 the external debt service to GDP ratio remained broadly constant at around 5%. Domestic debts interest payments steadily increased from 3.4% of GDP in 2001 to 4.2% in 2003 and increased to 9.2% in 2004. In 2004 servicing of interest on contracted debt consumed 40.3% of the recurrent budget and the interest element of debt servicing represents a major concern for budget allocation and public resource management. As a share of GDP, Government domestic debt rose from 27% at the end of 2003 to 32% at the end of 2004. The Gambia’s domestic debt stock as a share of GDP under the APRC regime is more than double the average for non CFA/SSA countries and four times the level in the highly indebted poor countries (HIPC) eligible non CFA/SSA countries. It is worth noting that the high debt servicing has serious implications for poverty alleviation because it reduces the sustainability of current poverty alleviation programmes.
We in the UDP/NRP Alliance resolve to carry out financial reforms and institute financial discipline to ensure effectiveness of poverty reduction policies. To increase the revenue base of the economy, the Alliance will concentrate on the growth of the productive base of the economy. Instead of a tax and debt driven economy, the Alliance will encourage the growth of industries to manufacture and produce goods for export. Agricultural produce in the form of fruits and vegetable exist but are not processed for export. Similarly abundant fishery resources exist but are not processed for export. The UDP/NRP Alliance will embark on deliberate policies to process these resources, the proceeds of which will improve our foreign exchange earnings and thus provide revenue for further investments.
Recent reports indicate a substantial reduction in Government resources allocated to the Agriculture, education and health sectors under the APRC leadership. In 2004 and 2005 the Agricultural sector was allocated 2.9% and 3.4% of the Governments’ recurrent budget (financed largely from Government revenues). The education sector received 10.3% and 10.7% during the same period, while the share of the Government recurrent budget devoted to the health sector fell from 9.8% to 8.9%.
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I do not oppose unity but I oppose dumb union. |
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Sister Omega
United Kingdom
2085 Posts |
Posted - 02 Sep 2006 : 17:36:26
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Nyarikangbanna the UDP/NRP prosposal is very interesting especially the growth of the manufacturing sector is potentially a positive step in the right direction. Many would agree Gambia needs to balance her books. Can you clarify for us by answering the following questions:
1.Where will the revenue come from for the UDP/NRP alliance to fund its maufacturing sector prosposals, and what percentage of this will go towards funding debt repayments and further investments for the poverty reduction programmes?
2.What are the UDP/NRP policy on private and public ownership sector collaboration to make up for the shortfall in public sector investment of Health, Education and Argriculture?
3. What strategies will UDP/NRP Coalition put into place to reverse the trend which it has identified as weaknesses in the APRC cycle of over-taxation and indebtness?
4.Has the UDP/NRP been able to ascertain the reasons why the APRC took out these loans from the IMF and World Bank and the Loan conditions attahed to them. How does the UDP/NRP propose to repay these debts and have they identified where leakage have occurred, and what preventative measures will the UDP/NRP put into place to overspending?
5.How does the UDP/NRP propose to do this?
Nyarikangbanna I look foward to reading your reponse. I'd also like to ask the same questions of all parties standing in this month's elections.
Peace
Sister Omega |
Peace
Sister Omega |
Edited by - Sister Omega on 02 Sep 2006 17:41:39 |
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kobo
United Kingdom
7765 Posts |
Posted - 03 Sep 2006 : 08:39:26
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| Thanks Sister Omega for this academic assignment to Nyarinkangbana amongst others. However thought that you may not get any reactions am afraid, therefore just making comments for the topic to be in spotlight for reactions to those challenged in their economic policies and party manifesto. |
Edited by - kobo on 03 Sep 2006 08:42:14 |
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Nyarikangbanna
United Kingdom
1382 Posts |
Posted - 03 Sep 2006 : 18:48:32
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Sister omega, thank you for your response. As I have said earlier, I am not a party agent and therefore not better positioned to answer all your concerns. The good news is, I have some answers. To start with, we must realise that our debt burden like all developing countries, is one of the greatest impediment to our development. Therefore putting that into perspective will enable you to connect the dots my answers will provide. Let me press on now. Please allow me.
In 2005 alone, we paid D723million as interest payment on our internal debt most of which were accrued through treasury bills. If this amount stands only for interest, you can imagine what the principal would be like. What the UDP/NRP have suggested is that they will limit if not close that avenue that is attracting a lot of investment from the local commercial banks in the form buying treasury bills with huge interest rates attached thereby increasing the debt burden of the country without any positive return for the people. They would then replace it with an entrepreneurial scheme through which the commercial banks would still give loans to the state but such loans would be utilised to create and support profit making venues like manufacturing among others. In order words, the loans we take internally will be invested in the productive sector of the economy. Once you do that, you expect profit obviously. So you can still be paying the debt while creating jobs and reducing poverty simultaneously. I am not sure whether such venues would be nationalised or a combination of the state and private sector participation. I would prefer the latter.
The World Bank, the IMF and the G8 have recognised in their meeting in Scotland last year that they need to write-off some of the third world debt in order to allow the global economy to grow. They cited good governance, respect for rule of law and human rights and a robust public finance management as pre-requisites for any countries qualification in this scheme. Countries like South Africa, Senegal, Mali, Ghana etc have all been tested and proven to have satisfied the requirements and today most of them have greater part of their debt written-off. Gambia did not meet any of the requirements above thus, the reason why we are not benefiting from the Scheme. What the UDP/NRP seeks to do if elected is to give confidence to our creditors by ensuring that all these requirements are fully met and sustained and that would eventually qualify us to access this privilege. The creditors have nothing against us. They know how important it is to allow the global economy to progress. In 2005 alone, we paid D226million as interest on foreign debts. Think about what the principal would be like. Even if we have 20% of our foreign debt written-off, that would leave us with lots of millions. That money could go a long way in supporting any sector of the economy including manufacturing.
The US government have also created a special fund to support the economic growth of third world countries and it is a grant. Again conditions are attached. They are not draconian. It is all about respect for human rights, rule of law, good governance and proper financial discipline in the public service. Just recently, Ghana benefited $50million [fifty million Us Dollars] under this scheme. Gambia initially qualified but after careful review that decision was revoked meaning, we are as of now, not eligible to access that fund. Gambia is a small country. Think about what $50million can do in establishing an industry. What the UDP/NRP seeks to do is to pursue an ethical governance policy that would have all the above requirements at its core. In addition to that, sound foreign policy would be adopted. A foreign policy that does not recognise close relations with pariah states. This will enable us to showcase our nation as a vibrant democracy.
In the Geneva round in 2002, £118 million was pledged as grant to support our poverty reduction policies. You will agree with me that poverty cannot be reduced if unemployment is not tackled. Again, conditions were attached which our government failed to meet. This angered the donors who then decided to withhold the funds. UDP/NRP would seek to work hard to meet those conditions which are again not draconian, so that we can attract this fund.
UDP/NRP would also seek to widen our revenue base in order to enhance government’s ability to fund its own projects. There are still a lot of areas where government can attract tax and those areas are still untapped. So instead of raising taxes on basic commodities thereby making prices to sky rocket, UDP/NRP where possible, will look out for untapped areas for tax purpose.
UDP/NRP could also seek to tackle corruption and mismanagement in the public service. At the moment a lot have been lost through corruption and mismanagement. At the central bank alone D700 Million went missing in the recent past. One close confidant of the president who happened to be a manager in the central bank pleaded guilty in a plea bargain, for siphoning D225million and was sentenced to just 9 months imprisonment. Another close confidant and former majority leader in parliament deliberately evaded tax to the tune of D90million just because he believes he is above everything and therefore untouchable. By stopping or even scaling down this kind of things which are now endemic in the Gambia, you are saving us a lot of money. That is what The UDP/NRP seeks to do.
They would also strengthen our judicial which at the moment is in a deplorable state, and provide tax incentives to attract foreign investment. There is a lot of potentials in the Gambia but investors are just scared to put in their millions because there is no security for such investments. The judiciary is weak and the state players have a nasty utter contempt for the rule of law. This is what has been shying away foreign investment in the country. UDP/NRP would seek to reverse this trend so that we can have a vibrant private section participation in all the sectors of the economy. In that way, we can create lots of jobs, attract more foreign exchange earnings and revenue in the form of tax.
I hope the above answers all your questions. Thank you for your thoughts.
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I do not oppose unity but I oppose dumb union. |
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kobo
United Kingdom
7765 Posts |
Posted - 03 Sep 2006 : 20:56:57
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Where are the economics, theories and tools for domestic economic management? Untapped areas appears to be vague and unquestionably unavailable at the moment because of inflation, skyrocketing prices, high costs of living, rise in poverty, homgeneous businesses and lack of manufacturing and productive industry.
The other bits and pieces are all political and there ain't no basic economics knowledge that sustantiates earlier postings, in my opinion. |
Edited by - kobo on 03 Sep 2006 21:09:53 |
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Sister Omega
United Kingdom
2085 Posts |
Posted - 03 Sep 2006 : 22:27:59
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Nyarikangbanna, If a government decides to have a policy of zero tolerance on corruption it must be followed through and purging out the system is a messy business.
1. Nyarikangbanna do you think the UDP/NRP has appropriate strategies in place to carry out the job? If so what measures will they put into place to attain this goal?
Nyarikangbanna you are right to cite the case of central bank and the former Majority Leaders fraud case as large scale corruption.
2. How would UDP/NRP reverse the overall corruption mentality of Gambian Civil Servants who confuse the Public Purse with their own purse, and equality of opportunity with nepotism? How will the UDP/NRP make the system more transparent and accountable to the public?
Nyarikangbanna you indicated that the laws set down by Gambia's Creditors were not draconian and that the UDP/NRP would be able to fulfill their criteria.
3.However you didn't elaborate on the reason why Gambia was refused entrance into the African Growth and Opportunities Act. And what aspects of the criteria Gambia didn't fulfill and what assurances that UDP/NRP has to think if they would come into power that Gambia would definitely qualify for AGOA,HIPC etc?
4. What is the UDP/NRP foreign Policy and how does it differ from the APRC's bearing in mind what was yesterday's Pariah state can easily become a strategic ally tomorrow.
How does the UDP/NRP propose to strengthen the Judicary?
Peace
Sister Omega
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Peace
Sister Omega |
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kobo
United Kingdom
7765 Posts |
Posted - 03 Sep 2006 : 23:26:16
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| Apologises Nyarinkangbana as observed that fruitful discussions are flowing and for public benefit. Knowledge is in no ones dormain am afraid! Thanks for your contributions! Peace! |
Edited by - kobo on 03 Sep 2006 23:28:15 |
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ylowe
USA
217 Posts |
Posted - 04 Sep 2006 : 07:43:32
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Nyarikangbanna
I dont think what is causing the increase in prices is because the government is raising taxes on basic commodities. The gambia is an open economy with floating exchange rates and the value of the dalasi depends on the availability of foreign exchange in the country. Most commodities in the gambia are imported which requires foreign currencies. The less foreign exchange in the country the higher the exchange rate and therefore higher prices. If tourism and other sectors of the economy are bringing less foreign exchange we expect higher prices. Another reason for the higher prices might be because the central bank is circulating alot dalasis in the economy(more dalasis chasing few goods).
Thank you |
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jambo
3300 Posts |
Posted - 04 Sep 2006 : 10:12:20
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Ylowe,  thank you for the information, i love the bantaba, what you say is interesting, it sheds light on some of the things that i see in gambia. |
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Sister Omega
United Kingdom
2085 Posts |
Posted - 04 Sep 2006 : 12:49:14
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Ylowe,
Thanks for shredding greater light on some of the reasons for Gambian inflation. It is much appreciated.
Peace
Sister Omega
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Peace
Sister Omega |
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Nyarikangbanna
United Kingdom
1382 Posts |
Posted - 04 Sep 2006 : 16:37:46
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YlOwe, thanks for your posting. I must say, I entirely agree with what you have said. You have just dwelled on the laws of demand and supply and your conclusion is very well in tune with the facts on the ground. Having said that, I must draw to your attention that my analysis was not aimed to explain the causes of inflation even though I wallowed in to it a bit and that being the case, it is not my contention that taxing basic commodities is the main cause of inflation in the Gambia .What I was trying to show is that When a commodity is taxed, the margin of that tax is added on to the purchase price which the consumer has to bear in the form of higher prices. If the purchasing power of that consumer has not matched up to that price margin then he is going to be under pressure. Since these are essential commodities consumers would be forced to buy regardless of price. This have been one of the measures the APRC have been using to finance our budget of D885 million which came about largely due unauthorized spending.
Again, I must stress, the reason for the present hyper price increases on basic commodities is by far more explained by Ylowe’s account than any other account you might come across but I want to believe it does not stand alone.
I shall be responding to sister omega when I reach home this evening.
Thanks
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I do not oppose unity but I oppose dumb union. |
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