Stepping up to the New Normal

Sometimes, only the wildest ideas can take us out of ourselves with courage to face the gravest challenges. Pat Ganase resorts to “blue sky thinking” with practical supports from marine scientist, Dr Anjani Ganase.

The people of Tobago may – at this point – be relatively unscathed by Covid-19. The economy is in shambles but we have health! We are fortunate that our leaders closed borders early; and we have not imported any infected persons for four weeks. With the prioritized restart of commercial and industrial activities (announced by the Prime Minister on May 9, 2020), borders may open with caution after the end of June.  

Many Tobago hotels have been posting friendly messages on their web pages about travel restrictions and re-booking; about extra care in cleaning procedures and sanitization. Will this messaging cut it to bring international visitors this far south on the Caribbean archipelago?

What about the countries that are our markets? Unfortunately we remain connected to a world in distress. It took years to find the vaccine for smallpox and many more decades to eradicate it. So let’s be sure of one thing: we must be prepared to live with Covid-19 for some time.

The North East Tobago Marine Protected Area is an ambitious plan to conserve a large coastal and offshore area, with potential for research, jobs, and sustainable use of marine resources. Photo by Anjani Ganase

The cruise ship industry is dead in the water; we don’t want a cruise ship anywhere in our exclusive economic zone. Airplanes are grounded, and even when aviation restarts – after the layoffs and other cost-cutting measures – it will be on a needs basis. Leisure travel may not recover for many more months; and may indeed return to the luxury it was a generation ago.  The need to physically distance passengers in the aircraft will necessarily make travelling by air more expensive. (It might allow a return to heftier baggage allowances!) Who will afford to travel to Tobago?

There will be no hordes of foreign visitors coming for jazz festival, jouvay on the bay, golf by the beach, birding in the rainforest, eco-adventures, authentic village experiences, dirt-oven baked bread and cocoa tea. We are fortunate that Trinidadians have become accustomed to staycations; and Tobago is a favourite destination. So there’s the first opportunity.

If I were a business owner on Tobago, I would seriously consider my options. After the last four weeks, I would have pulled my shareholders, board of directors, friends and family for a huddle – by zoom or other on-line facility of course. The challenge is not to re-organise for the re-opening of a tourist season. Let us consider  re-organising to the very first principles of business in an island economy for survival.

What does survival mode in Tobago look like? Do we expect to be bailed out by government? How long might we expect to be supported? How can we help ourselves so as not to squander the support?

Fort King George overlooks Rockly Bay, the site of many battles for Tobago. Photo by Anjani Ganase

Re-opening the borders

While we try to wean away from our dependency on imported clientele, let us reduce our expenses in other areas – food import and energy costs. We acknowledge there must be some inflow of foreign exchange into our country. However, the threat for both the business owner and the governing body THA is a risky future with pandemics spread by international travel.  So how do we make our destination worth the risk and even essential but still safe for nationals and visitors?  To do this we need to shift our market focus to, for example, long stay visitors, where travelers can be vetted beforehand, similar to a long-stay VISA process that looks at health and travel history etc.

The next step is figuring out the attractions for long-stay visitors. What would they come to Tobago for? What about university students doing a semester abroad? Or researchers setting up lab experiments. What about persons in the film and TV industry who may need to be on set for months?

The infrastructure needed must be scientific and flexible with facilities for research including basic labs, temporary offices and plug in stations (with the latest tools and tech. We need to be at the forefront of digital technology and communications. The island should be covered by wifi.

Do the Math!

Here’s a quick and simple SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis for a hotel of say 70 to 100 rooms.

STRENGTH: Property with facilities to support accommodation and catering; some land space for growing food; staff capable of servicing visitors; existing credible business owners/managers capable of networking with appropriate partners, bankers and investors.

WEAKNESS: limited/ no access to international market; low recognition in the local (Trinidad) market.

THREATS: employees laid off; reluctant business partners; limited support from government and agencies

OPPORTUNITY: at a time when economic activity is lowest, the sky’s the limit.  Here are some options:

·      Create communities around your properties: this will ensure your survival and that of your neighbours: encourage food gardens; share communal kitchens; teach, learn and grow together.

·      Convert the business to accommodate long-term (most likely local or regional) stays with a few rooms reserved for the international market if/ when it opens up; keep skilled persons in employment and retrain if possible.

·      Collaboration is the new competition: seek local partnerships with the TT film association, The Slow Food movement, UTT, UWI and other universities regionally and internationally, educational NGOs, private schools etc.

·      Partner with university or learning (local or international) institutions to create a Tobago campus: agricultural, conservation and marine sciences are urgently required for Tobagonians.

·      Become a partner in a film-making project or television industry: creative film-makers need partners that can provide property (for sets), accommodation and catering. A reality tv show or a cooking show could attract an international syndicate (Fox or Disney)

·      Partner with a learning institution for a school of arts: culinary arts, yoga, surfing, Carnival arts.

·      Partner with an existing Tobago business, for example a dive operator to pursue sustainable marine research and development.

·      Create a centre for marine or protected area management; with museum and interpretive presentations.

Fisherman sets out in his pirogue; artisanal fishing must be supported. Photo by Anjani Ganase

Tobago House of Assembly

If the private sector goes aggressively into the new normal, what should be the functions of the THA in the new order? Can the Tobago House of Assembly use its influence to facilitate transformation and encourage innovation and a leap into the future?

Let’s do a SWOT analysis on this governing body.

STRENGTH: administration; governing body, institutional network (banks, authorizing agencies etc)

WEAKNESS: requires regular injections of money from central government

THREATS: loss of political power; island ecosystems threatened by climate change (coral reefs, sargassum, degradation of environment); loss of natural resources, beaches, fisheries, forestry reserves, fresh water

OPPORTUNITY: leadership by example and use of existing assets to diversify the economy while securing livelihoods. Some projects include

·      Convert Cove Estate into a learning and research institution for new and innovative industries: alternate energy from wind, wave or solar; conversion and use of sargassum.

·      Utilise Louis d’Or farm and nurseries (and agricultural expertise) as a centre for seeding home agricultural holdings all over Tobago

·      Create a food forest at Les Coteaux against the annual degradation and bushfires

·      Protect the island’s freshwater supply by extending the Main Ridge Forest Reserve to include the Southern Main Ridge (along the Bloody Bay-Parlatuvier Main Road) and the Northern Main Ridge.

·       Institute the Protected Areas Plan with the North East Tobago Marine Protected Area.

·      Manage Buccoo Reef Marine Park as a model for rehabilitation and sustainable use.

·      Facilitate new businesses being created in existing properties.

·      Establish scholarship programmes to develop trades/ skills in the necessary fields

Ideas and Inspiration

This is an ideas bank. Some ideas can be instantly initiated; others may take months to start. There may need to be two or three year plans broken into “phases” to become operational. In the meantime, people will need to live. Encourage community strengthening through food: agriculture, fishing, green markets. Acknowledge the potential of the private sector and business owners as leaders to restart enterprise.  The goodwill that can be created within communities around business owners leading towards a new vision can be empowering.