Economic Recovery Gathering Pace – Minister Clarke

  • The Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Dr. the Hon. Nigel Clarke, says recovery from the ravages of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is gathering pace, as evidenced by the recent positive economic indicators. 
  • He cited, among other things, the 14.2% growth for April to June 2021, and the 93,400 increase in the number of persons in jobs in July. Dr. Clarke said that the growth out-turn for the June 2021 quarter came in way above what anybody would have forecasted, thought or expected. He noted that while it does not recover all the lost output owing to the pandemic, it substantially advances the likelihood of that. 
  • Clarke said that the best part about the recovery is that the jobs are returning, describing this development as a big deal. Noting that Jamaica lost approximately 100,000 jobs over four years following the 2008/09 global financial crisis, he said it took us 10 years to get those jobs back. 
  • The Minister noted that approximately 150,000 jobs had been lost in the pandemic over four months in 2020, and in 12 months just under 100,000 of those have been brought back, which is surely a sign that the economic recovery is gathering pace. He added that Jamaica is among the leaders in the Caribbean region, as far as the strength, pace and momentum of its economic recovery is concerned. While acknowledging that Jamaica had not yet returned to pre-COVID economic performance, he maintained that there is reason for cautious optimism going forward. 
  • Clarke has said that notwithstanding the challenges Jamaica has had with vaccine hesitancy and vaccine supply, economic recovery in Jamaica is under way. He pointed out that leading international agency, S&P Global Ratings, upgraded its outlook for Jamaica from ‘Negative’ to ‘Stable’, in the midst of the pandemic, with a low vaccination rate. The Minister added that today, Jamaica has a credit rating that is effectively unchanged from its pre-pandemic credit rating. Dr. Clarke maintained that the recovery is showing up where it matters most, and that is with people having an income in their pockets, once again, in exchange for the work that they put out.

(Source: JIS News)