Preparing our people for the Great Shake up!

J. Roughan

9 February 2009

Honiara          

 

Internationally, the world is one big mess! The Lords of this World--the bankers. big moneymen, financiers, movers and shakers, etc.--who up to the end of 2008, were considered untouchable, were way up there almost out of sight and in many ways, powers beyond us. These are the  ones who always lived a-top the financial ladder, above the rest of us mere mortals and peasants, but are now nervously looking over their shoulders and wonder where it will all end. The world as they knew it and prospered from has disappeared forever 

 

The greatest financial shock ever to hit the modern world, every bit as bad as the 1930 Great Depression when millions lost jobs, nations refused to trade with each other and no one really knew what to do, now rocks the whole developed world. It's become a financial tsunami not merely hitting the people of southern Africa, South America and most of Asia who are finding life terribly difficult but also the rich nations of Europe, America and Japan are losing jobs and aren't sure how to stop a terrible slide into serious poverty. 

 

Developing-world people always knew they were poor, living a kind of second class world citizenship and destined to wait on the latest word from those superior beings from the rich First World who thought themselves so far above us. Now there has been a great reversal! In reality  most First World families weren't rich but many did own their own homes, could count on a bit of money in the bank and most important, could  boast of  having a job. Now, many of these basic assurances have come crashing down. In America, for instance, over the past few months, tens of thousands of ordinary families have lost their homes, their bank accounts have shrunk drastically and, most devastatingly, no longer can count on having jobs. 

 

In recent past economic recessions, normally only a handful of nations felt the chill winds of economic weakness. Not this time! Right across the whole developed and the developing world a sort of panic has set in.  And this current recession has a long way to play out before the world as we knew will come flooding back. Forget about 2009! Many in the world will be running hard just to keep in place while famine, war and suffering will be the lot of many.

 

We in the Solomons, however, don't have to travel down that same path. Make no mistake about it, however, money will be hard to get and even harder to hold onto because ordinary store things are already jumping in price. Our inflation rate is above 20% and probably not drop much over the whole of this year. 

 

Energy prices used mostly for producing electricity and powering our transport will fall slightly in the next few months but it's doubtful whether SIEA, ship owners, bus operators, taxi drivers and truckers will take much notice of the world's reduction of fuel costs to slash their own prices. For instance, SIEA stubbornly sticks to its $4.05 per kilowatt hour for its Cash Power and a whopping $4.90 for household users. That price level made some economic sense when diesel was selling at $13.00+ a liter in mid-2008 but is nothing short of highway robbery with diesel now selling for less than $7.00 a liter.

 

But the same charge must be leveled at our transport industry also. Most ships still charge the traveling public the same price as when diesel fuel prices were sky high. What defense do taxi drivers, truck owners and bus operators use to justify their over high prices? They were quick to increase their prices when fuel became so expensive. Yet, I don't see any quickness about their dropping prices now that the cost of petrol and diesel  have almost halved since July, 2008.  

 

The job market did not grow much last year and will become even weaker this year. Rather than salary raises, many a worker, except those in government of course, will be asked to take less although they should be getting more. Self employment--production of coconut oil, food security economy, home-made cooked foods, ice blocks made from pineapple, mango, lemon juices not sugar water and coloring that goes on today, etc--will save many a family. I won't even mention rice prices!

 

The rest of the world is rightfully worried sick about the terrible economic downturn playing out this year. However, I fail to see national leaders  understanding the problem much less coming up with ways our people can come out of this tsunami stronger and more dynamic. Our Social Unrest years of 1998-2003 shouldn't be forgotten. At that time, it was Guale's Weather Coast that suffered greatly. In this current storm which  could hit all sections and areas of the Solomons, things could become a lot worse.