Belize economy: Upbeat about future.

The United States may be busy nationalizing its banking and financial services industry, but neighboring and tiny Belize is happy to be private.

Tourism is the major industry of Belize and it has been hit by a drop in arrivals from the United States, that sends the maximum number of them to Belize. However, there does not appear to be a perceptible drop in its earnings from the export of marine products, bananas, garments, etc.

The foriegn debt of the country is, however, a different ball game. Now said to be in the region of 73% of its GDP, it continues to stress the economy with servicing the debt taking away the cream of its earnings. This is, perhaps, the biggest challenge facing the Belize establishment, that is otherwise upbeat about its future.

The services sector of Belize contributes the major share to the GDP at around 63%, followed by agriculture at 30%, and industry at 17%. The services sector also provides employment to nearly 62% of the workforce, while agriculture provides jobs to 20%, and industry about 18%.

The country’s agricultural produce includes bananas, sugar, citrus, etc. The industries sector includes tourism, garments, oil, food-processing, contruction, etc. Belize exports sugar, bananas, fish, wood, etc., and imports manufactured goods, chemicals, fuels, pharmaceuticals, machinery and equipment, etc. The major trading partners are the United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Cuba, etc.

The major challenge facing the country is the huge foreign debt which can be wiped off only with increased foreign exchange earnings. But tourism, which is the largest foreign exchange earner for the country is suffering on account of the recession in the originating countries, especially the U.S. Othe major issues include unemployment and poverty.

Belize is considering various ways to deal with these issues, including taking foreign assistance, and with the gradual improvement in the global economic environment, there is scope for Belize to capitalize on it to improve its economic condition.

Dominican economy: Lot more to be done.

The Hurricane (Dean)-hit economy of Dominica is already recovering. But the pace at which unemployment and public debt is increasing, is much faster than the pace of economic development.

The country’s public debt to the GDP ratio is said to be well over 75%, with unemployment touching 30%, and inflation around 4%. The Dominican economy gave a good account of itself in 2008, and expected to close in the black for the fiscal 2009 also.

The GDP per capita of the country is a reasonable near USD 10,000.00. Agriculture, by far, is the most important occupation of the people, with Bananas occupying the pride of place. Other agricultural produce includes root crops, cocoa, coconuts, mangoes, citrus fruits, etc. Agriculture provides employment to well over 40% of the workforce, and constitutes almost 18% to the GDP.

Among the industries in Dominica are soap, shoes, furniture, tourism, etc. The country exports bananas, foodstuffs, fruits, etc., and imports machinery and equipment, food, chemicals, etc. The United States, China, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, etc are the major trading partners.

The present economic downturn around the world has hit Dominica’s economy also. Foreign remittances are down with the number of tourist arrivals coming down. Demand for Dominica’s exports is down on account of the economic situation in the importing countries. The general economic outlook for Dominica, at least in the short term, is not very positive.

Although Dominica has adopted a consultative approach to budget making, and has tried to address the concerns of all concerned, it has not succeeded to a great extent, in diversifying its economic base, and to cater to the growing number of the jobless. In order to meet the challenges posed by the restrictive growth in the next few years worldwide, Dominica has to gear itself to create opportunities to its people to realize their potential, and in turn, contribute to the welfare of the country.

Suriname economy: Need to diversify.

The Suriname economy is sustained by the mining industry, with bauxite leading the way. Other important activities in mining include gold mining, and oil exploration.

The oil sector now looks set to occupy an important place in the economy of the country. Several international companies have been involved in the development of the oil sector, though Government retains control of the industry as a whole.

Among other industries that are being explored to add to the basket of economic activities are development of wood based industries, and also tourism. But mining continues to be the main contributor to the GDP, with services contributing 65% of the inputs, followed by industry at 25%, and agriculture at 10%.

In the same fashion, services industry provides employment to 80% of the workforce, with industry chipping in with 14% jobs, and agriculture 8%. Among the agricultural produce of Suriname are rice, bananas, peanuts, coconuts, etc. Forest produce is also an important addition to the allied agricultural activities.

In the industrial sector, apart from the mining industry, lumbering, fishing, food processing, etc., are important industries. The country exports gold, crude oil, alumina, rice, bananas, etc., and imports capital equipment, machinery, foodstuffs, chemicals, etc. The United States, Netherlands, Cananda, etc are among the major trading partners of Suriname.

The major problem facing the country is unemployment, with over half of the workforce looking for work. Another problem is the non availability of proper infrastructure, especially energy that is acting as a hindrance to rapid economic progress and development. Cheap energy can act as a catalyst for the expansion of the economy and its diversity.

Suriname needs to rejig its priorities, and diversity its economic activities by taking advantage of its location and its strong ties with Europe, especially, the Netherlands in its quest for economic development.

Guatemala economy: Catering to the haves.

Having gone through a civil war that lasted for over 35 years, Guatemala can be expected to have all the legacy problems of such a history.

Among the most populous of the Latin American countries, it also has a record of sorts for income disparities. It is a typical case of the rich becoming richer and the poor becoming poorer.

The private sector plays a major role in Guatemala’s economy, and contributes 90% of the GDP. The services sector dominates in the economic activity sphere, contributing 60% and above to the GDP, while industry comes second at around 26%, and agriculture at 13%.

While the services industry provides employment to only 35% of the workforce, agriculture takes care of 50% of the workforce. Among the important agricultural products are coffee, sugar, and bananas. Other produce includes corn, beans, spices, etc. Agriculture contributes to nearly 25% of the export earnings.

Among the important industries of Guatemala are sugar, textiles, chemicals, apparel, rubber, food processing, etc. The major part of the manufacturing output caters to internal demand, and also from sorrounding countries especially the United States. Guatemala has a large expatriate population that remits a substantial amount of foreign exchange.

Guatemala also benefits from its membership of the CAFTA, the Central American Free Trade Agreement. Under this program, Guatemala is able to export goods without customs tariffs and is able to attract foreign investment. Even though the country has a fairly sound macro-economic structure in place, the problem is there is no percolation of economic benefits down the line.

Over half of the population of Guatemala lives below the poverty line,and over 30% of the population is said to manage on less than USD 2.00 a day. With the global economy in recession, Guatemala has to contend with decreasing demand for its goods and services, and a fall in the inward remittances.
Guatemala needs to urgently address its outstanding economic issues, and ensure a fair level of economic development to all sections of its society.

Jamaican economy: Payback time now.

Jamaica is sitting on a debt bomb, literally speaking. And now it appears to be time for a payback.

The current global economic crisis has exposed several myths about the strengths and weaknesses of the economies and economic systems around the world. Among the hardest hit are the ones considered to be the toughest and infalliable. One has to only look at the state of the American Banking and Financial Services industry to understand the point.

The Jamaican economy is sustained mainly by tourist revenues and inward remittances. The services sector provides employment to nearly 65% of the workforce, contributing over 60% to the GDP. And industry, dominated by bauxite and alumina related activities contributes about 35% to the GDP, while providing employment to 20% of the workforce. Among the other industries are cement, paper, chemicals, etc.

The country exports bauxite, alumina, coffee, chemicals, apparel, sugar, etc. And imports fuels, raw materials, machinery, capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, etc. By far U.S.A. is Jamica’s major trading partner, both for exports and imports.

The major problem faced by Jamaica now is the huge debt burden that is said to be about 130% of the GDP. Other problems include the slower growth on account of the general global slowdown that has hit Jamaica’s tourist industry. This in turn, has led to increasing unemployment and underemployment. This vicious circle has inevitably resulted in burgeoning crime that is actually posing a hurdle to the economic progress and development of the country.

The Jamaican authorities are considering various options to deal with the situation. But in view of the tight economic position in most parts of the world, Jamaica’s options for a bailout appear to be limited. One of the options is a bailout package from the World Bank and the IMF.

As a matter of fact, Jamaica is paying for its past excesses now.

Haiti economy: Looking for miracles.

A country that is only 600 miles from the America, the only Super Power in the world, is counted as the poorest one in the entire Western Hemisphere.

80% of the country’s population is said to live below the poverty line. Other notable features of this country apart from abject poverty are political uncertainty, economic mess, high rate of crime, and recurring natural disasters. With such serious problems plaguing the country for a long time, it is no surprise that very few have the courage to stick out their necks to talk about developing the country’s economy.

Agriculture is the major occupation of the people, with coffee, rice, corn, sorghum, sugarcane, etc., being the major produce. Wood is also produced in large quantities, so much so, that deforestration has become a major issue.

Among the industries are cement, textiles, sugar, flour milling, etc. The country exports coffee, cocoa, apparel, etc., and imports machinery, transport equipment, raw materials, fuels, foodstuffs, etc. By far the United States is the largest trading partner.

The United States has a special program in place to help Haiti achieve an acceptable level of socio-economic development. The Haitian Hemisphere Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement (HOPE) Act initiated in the year 2006 has been instrumental in increasing apparel exports from Haiti to the U.S. under a favorable trade regime. Another source of revenues for Haiti is remittances from Haitians working abroad.

Haiti is in urgent need for large infusions of funds for infrastructure development, and job generation. It needs to control high inflation, and create a favorable environment for investment, especially foreign investment. Haiti has also been a beneficiary of the World Bank sponsored Highly Indebted Poor Countries initiative, which shows how badly the country is doing.

While awaiting for a few miracles to happen to help the country, Haiti can also do somethings on its own to improve its economic and social position.

OECD ups global growth forecast.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Paris-based economic advisor to the world’s 30 biggest economies, including the United States and the European Union, has ventured out to predict a positive and upward economic growth for its members, that contribute to 80% of global economic growth, for the year 2010.

The OECD projects economic growth at 1.9% for the year 2010, and 2.5% for the year 2011. Much of this growth appears to be contributed by China, that is going from strengty to strength, and coming to occupy a pivotal position in the global economic development process. The Western and other countries cannot be very enthusiastic and happy about this situation, but there is pretty little they can do about it right now, without hurting themselves in the process. The desperation of their own econmic condition has persuaded them to go along with the present reality of a economically dominant China.

The present global economic crisis has forced avowedly capitalist countries like the United States and the United Kingdom to adopt several measures that are quite contradictory to their capitalist philosophy, and they would surely like to revert to their earlier systems, and regain their credibility. But the situation right now in not conducive to such an exercise.

According to the OECD, slow growth and high unemployment are going to the features of the slow and painful recovery that is now being witnessed, with relief, across the world. While none of the Western economies are expected to touch more than 3% growth, China is expected to clock a growth rate of 9.3% for 2010, and 10.2% for 2011. Other important economies that are likely to record high growth are India, Russia, and Brazil.

The economic crisis has forced a new equation on the world in which the traditional leaders like the U.S., have been forced to take the back seat and let their arch rivals like China do the driving, out of sheer necessity.

The next couple of years would be quite interesting in terms of the changing equations for countries vying to play a leadership role on the world economic and political stage.

Niger economy: At the bottom of the heap.

One of the poorest countries of the world, that is also referred to as a fourth-world country, this land-locked Sub-Saharan country, however, has, the world’s largest deposits of the strategic and important Uranium ore, that every country in the world, from the United States to Libya is keen on acquiring, more for military than industrial use.

The Niger economy is sustained by Agriculture, Industry and Trade. Agriculture is the major occupation of the people that contributes roughly 40% of the GDP, and provides employment to 90% of the workforce. Among the agricultural produce from Niger are rice, cotton, sorghum, millets, cassava, etc. Animal husbandry is an important allied activity, with poultry, and livestock breeding an important part of it, providing employment to a large number of people.

The industrial sector is dominated by Uranium based activities. Uranium mining provides jobs to a large number of people, and makes the country strategically important, despite its poverty. Other industries include chemicals, cement, textiles, food-processing, etc. The industrial sector provides employment to 6% of the workforce, and contributes about 18% to the GDP.

Next in importance to the economy is the trade sector including the services, that contributes about 45% of the GDP, and provides employment to 5% of the workforce. The country exports cotton garments, uranium ore, livestock, onions, cowpeas,etc., while it imports petroleum products, foodstuffs, cereals, transportation equipment, etc.

Niger has also gone through the process of receiving aid from bilateral and multilateral institutions, including the Program for the Highly Indebted Poor Countries of the IMF and the World Bank. It is also a beneficiary of the Fund for Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility of the IMF.

Niger has to put its house in order and seriously focus on the issue of economic development to achieve a minimum acceptable level of economic and social development.

Congo economy: Growth below potential.

The Democratic Republic of Congo, like many of its brethren in Africa, has gone through the painful process of foreign occupation, followed by internal disturbances, political and economic instability, et al. These legacy problems are playing their role in slowing the economic progress of the country.

Congo is a country rich in resources, with great potential for economic development. But poor policies, infrastructural weaknesses, and political instability have affected its growth. At one point of time, it even went through the World Bank and IMF approved program for Heavily Indebted Poor Countries.

Congo had recorded a GDP growth rate of 8%+ in 2008, and from there on it is going down steadily, and is projected to reach 5.7%, at the end of fiscal 2009, and reach 2.7% in 2010.

Industry contributes the major part of the GDP at 57%, followed by services at 37%, and agriculture at around 4%. The Government is encouraging the growth of the agricultural sector in view of the food crisis that the country has gone through.

The oil industry is the major contributor to the industrial sector, though declining production and falling international prices of oil have affected the revenues accruing from this industry. Mining is the next major industrial activity in Congo, with diamond, copper, cobalt, etc contributing the major share in this sector. Among other industries are cement, lumber, sugar, palm oil, soap, etc.

The country produces agricultural products such as sugar, peanuts, coffee, corn, rice, etc. It exports petroleum, diamonds, cocoa, coffee, wood products, etc., and imports foodstuffs, construction equipment and materials, capital equipment, etc.

Congo has great potential for growth, provided there is political stability, coupled with pragmatic economic policies, and proper exploitation of its natural resources without vandalizing them.

North Korea economy: Going nowhere.

Among the last of the communist bastions, and arguably the least open of economies, North Korea is seen to be on the brink of economic collapse by its rivals, including South Korea. It is even said that the United States and its allies have a contingency plan in case of a sudden flare up in North Korea, leading to its downfall of its present regime.

The North Korean economy is a highly centralized one and a good part of it is dedicated to cater to the demands of the military. The diversion of resources, as such scarce, for defence purposes, has left the civilian sector starved of development funds. Almost all the sectors of the economy are stunted, and in need of new investments to make them properly functional.

The agricultural sector is in dire need of developmental funds, and the country is reduced to depend on food aid from various quarters. Among the agricultural produce is rice, corn, pulses, soybean, etc. The industrial sector hosts machine building, chemicals, textiles, food processing, etc. Mining is also an important activity, and includes coal, iron, zinc, copper, lead, graphite, and certain precious metals. The country exports minerals, agricultural products, textiles, armaments, etc. It in turn imports machinery and equipment, food grains, petroleum, etc. China and South Korea are the main trading partners of North Korea. Other include Russia, India, Thailand, etc.

Statistics about vital economic parameters are hard to come by, but the North Korea economy is expected to grow overall by about 3% in 2009. The country is burdened with a huge external debt. And the country’s poor external relations, especially with the United States have compunded its economic problems. In particular, its nuclear program is a target of the West, especially the U.S., rightly or wrongly.

The North Korean regime, of late, is seen slowly moving towards more openness, and a major change in its international relations and economic system is likely to have great repercussions in its region.

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