Introduction
The purpose of this work is to identify the market failures of the Jamaican economy in addition to its contribution to the country’s current economic state. According to (Arnold, 2011) Market failure occurs when a production of a specific product is less than optimal (Microeconomics, 2011, p. 365). A look into how Jamaica’s supply and demand, market structure, and market variables will reveal some of the causes contributing to the country’s current economic condition. Jamaica is an island among thousands throughout the known Caribbean region. The island is the third largest in the Caribbean. According to (Mtholyoke.edu, 2014) the country was first inhabited by Arawak Indians whom were annihilated through violence and decease
Eventually, the island was besieged and taken over by the British Empire in 1655 who in turn harvested the island’s resources through slavery. Slavery was eventually abolished in 1834 leaving the island with two hundred and fifty thousand African descendent (Mtholyoke, 2014). In 1962 the Jamaican people gained their independence from Great Britain and began a path towards economic prosperity. After gaining their independence in 1962; the Jamaican economies quickly transformed into a paradoxical state of which appeared to have no escape. The country’s market failures were and still remain a result of failed rules, policies, regulations, and greed that is subjecting the country’s economy to what seems to be an uncontrollable down spiral. The Jamaican economy is caught in an economic cycle of haphazard policies by a debase government determined to validate and obscure their exploitation of power for their own gain and the only way to economic prosperity is economic
Even though the global recession was impactful, tourism has sustained growth by at minimum 4% annually; tourism accounts for 25 percent of Jamaican employment and is 10% of the GDP (Jamaica-travel-secrets.com, 2014). Foreign tourist patrons however are threatening the Jamaican ecosystem with its income dependent activities such as pollution, tailored division of labor, and costal development. These environmental conditions will eventually take a negative sway in the tourism industry because travelers will no longer desire a destination with high pollution or they will be compelled to pay even less to come to the country which ultimately will affect the Jamaican economy
“Jamaica’s a country of great dichotomy. On the one hand you have a tourist industry with great beaches and resorts, but on the other you have such great poverty and the violence that goes along with that.”(Michael Franti) In this paper, I will talk about the geography, the history of Jamaica, the people that live there now and that lived there in the past, the lifestyle of the society, and the society, like the government and economy.
In document 10, it tells how the British traded a little for a lot, this means the British traded finished goods that the African people didn't have, like powder, bullets, iron bars, copper bars, brass pans, british malt spirits etc… for slaves “but in the main, with very little that is not of our own growth or manufacture”. In document 9, it shows Jamaica's (British colony)time span of the years 1703-1789 and how the slave population was at 45,000 at 1703 and now it's at 250,000 at 1789. Threw all of these slaves
The Caribbean is comprised of a group of island. Jamaica is one of the greatest Antilles. It has a tropical climate. Each country has its own culture, Jamaicans is not an exemption, and they have an assorted and distinctive one. “Their culture is a complex mixture of African, Arabic, European, East Indian, and Chinese roots combining together to create a rich, dynamic heritage” (Gall, 2009).
The majority of the nearly 500,000 slaves on the island, at the end of the eighteenth century endured some of the worst slave conditions in the Caribbean. These people were seen as disposable economic inputs in a colony driven by greed. Thus, they receive...
A way to measure a country’s economy is to look at its gross domestic products. This tells the total value of the goods and services that a country produces. In Jamaica, the economy has always been the main problem for the people. It is based primarily on agriculture, tourism, and bauxite mining. The country is very dependent upon tourism, its main source of foreign exchange. Bauxite mining is the principal source of revenue for the country. Most people do not have the opportunity to go to school and also there are not enough jobs for everybody. On the contrary, the United States is wealthiest in terms of economy. They have abundant natural resources, a well-developed infrastructure, and high productivity. Moreover, people have more chances of going to school, and there are more job opportunities for those who graduate as
Pattullo report gives a first-hand account as to who controls each segment of the tourism industry; the tour operations, the large hotel chains, and the airline companies. The Caribbean’s economy depends on an industry that is mostly foreign-owned and controlled and the people who live there do not have an opportunity of owning or investing in it. In Pattullo’s report, it reveals that the large travel industry corporations are the ones who have most of the control. But those corporations are not located there. Her report exposes that the true benefiters of tourism in the Caribbean are foreign-owned investors and corporations.
This topic was selected to widen the researchers understanding of the real reason slavery was abolished in the British West Indies as well as why sources have differing opinions.
During the period of 1640-1690 the expansion of the Caribbean “economy, was made possible by the expansion of the European colonisation over the Atlantic. However Africans were captured for slave trade to sustain the development of sugar industry, through slave labour to produce sugarcane.” (Grouchier & Walton, 1629: 418-420). The scramble for Africa brought about gender inequality within the African society, the European invasion in the Atlantic introduced some political conflicts regarding the demand for economic control and to take over the Atlantic. (Hornsby & Hermann, 2005: 127). Nevertheless sugar plantation was jointly supported by the cooperate finance and the state. (Stuart, 2004: 3-8). However according to Richards most sugar plantation owners would have to anticipate that their international investors would desire a large amount of raw sugar. (Richard, 1974: 38). nevertheless the attitude of the plantation owners was partly due to an increased amount of “optimism” and partly because of the difficulty of international communications in the 17th century. This shared attitude brought a lot of farmer’s to debtor’s prison while some extremely prospered. (Mints, 44-45). Nevertheless this essay will pay attention to economic, political and social consequences of the sugar revolution in the Caribbean.
The political and economic history of Jamaica is based upon its foundation as a slave colony. From the beginning, the colony was under Spanish rule that relied upon native slave laboring in the sugar fields. The first law to be implemented upon the island under Spanish rule was the Repartimiento, introduced by Governor Esquivel, the first governor of Jamaica. The law enabled colonists to apply for and receive special permission to use the natives for a period of time; forcing them into labors such as planting and logging (Bennett 70). Francisco de Garay, who became governor in 1514, enacted an other set of regulations called the Requermiento (The Requirement) (Bennett 70). This system was implemented with the basis that the colonists had to convert the natives to Christianity; Garay was hopeful that in doing so, the natives would “be tractable, properly maintained and live and greatly multiply” (Sherlock 70).
Once the British gained control of the island, development was swift. The industries of sugar cane and other agricultural resources were increased, thus creating a larger demand for African slaves. Due to this explosion of growth in the late 17th century, Jamaica became one of the largest slave trading centers in the world. The slave trade was conducted out of the city of Port Royal, made famous for being a hideout of the pirate Blackbeard, until the city was destroyed by an earthquake in 1692. The destruction of Port Royal led to th...
The Caribbean is often overlooked when the concept of slavery is discussed. However, the Caribbean islands played an integral part in the building of various countries’ economies around the world; primarily European countries. Many of the social stigmas that are associated with slavery are still present in various Caribbean countries’ societies today. Caribbean cultures have very strong African roots as of the numerous traditions carried from Africa by the slaves. This paper will give an overall view of slavery in the Caribbean and go more in depth into the economic, social, and cultural affects that it had and is still giving in the Caribbean using Haiti as a focal point.
Life made into a commodity to be bought and sold as an animal or machine, born to serve the dominant humans marked by white skin. In this way colonialism as a political entity was created to exploit the earth and its people in order to profit white Europeans. The economic dependency established by the slave trade established a stratified socio-economic hierarchy based on racism. The inequities inherent in this system caused the exploitation of less powerful resources to be established as the means of economic growth and prosperity throughout colonialism. The lack of representation of the oppressed black majority brought about a series of uprisings against colonialism. In Jamaica the Rastafarian movement brought to the forefront the pressing issues of deprivation upheld by the socio-economic structure of the island. The ideology of Rastafarians instilled personal liberation and autonomy at the time of Jamaican Independence, helping the population deal with decolonization. This paper will deal with the implications of this thesis throughout the history of Jamaica from the colonial to post Independence years (1962-1980). The rise of Rastafarianism can be seen in response to the history of inequity of colonialism. The mentality of humanization upheld in Rasta acted as force of mental liberation. The influence of this ideology upon society around the time of Independence was reflected in politics of the time. At the time of Independence serious historical issues of lack of representation of the black majority were articulated in the words and works of Rastafarians and their liberating ideology.
In the 1970s, the country’s former prime minister signed a loan agreement which ultimately led Jamaica to over four billion dollars in debt to the World Bank and IMF. This ultimately caused a sinking economy of low valued imports and sweatshops are destroying local businesses and agriculture. In the video, we see workers who are working gruesome six-day-a-week work schedules to receive the legal minimum wage of only $30 in US money for the entire week. Many women have protested against the poor compensation, and have been fired from their jobs; being placed on a blacklist preventing them from ever getting work again. The country’s ports are lined with the factories of high profile companies, ...
Jamaica is the third largest Caribbean Island, measuring 146 miles at its widest point. The warm weather, high mountains and broad plains provide Jamaica with diversity in climate and agriculture. The population of Jamaica is estimated to be around two million people, with nearly a half-million living in Kingston, the capital and largest city in Jamaica. Of those residing in Jamaica, 90% are of African descent, with the other ten percent made up of mostly Caucasians, East Indians and Chinese (Barrett 1997:3). Popular culture is heavily influenced by the African heritage, while formal behavior is unmistakably British in style. The unofficial language of Jamaica is English; however th...
According to the ‘World Tourism Organization’ (UNWTO), the tourism industry is one of the fastest growing sectors in the world, as it is estimated that by the year 2020, 7.8 billion people (roughly a quarter of the world’s population) will embark on a foreign trip (Bennett & Gebhardt 15). The Caribbean is said to be the most economically dependent on this industry, as the ‘Caribbean Tourism Organisation’ states that the industry forms the “economic backbone of most countries in the Region”(“Caribbean Tourism Industry” 1), implications for what tourism’s affect on the region have arisen and have prompted further research into matter. Since the 1970’s research regarding tourism in the Caribbean has attempted to determine the social, cultural, environmental, and economic impacts of tourism. Much of the research has found that there are in fact many negative adverse affects, and Jackson’s article asserts that, “Governments often commit money and other resources to support the growth and development of tourism and often turn a blind eye to its negative impacts” (574). The reason why tourism looks attractive (and thus turn a blind eye) to these Caribbean countries is because of “its potential to foster GDP growth, to create employment, to increase foreign exchange earnings, and attract capital investment” (Daye, Chambers, and Roberts 2). This paper will overview such impacts by first discussing a case study conducted in Jamaican resort town, Ocho Rios, with Sheere Brooks discussing the observed social, cultural and economical consequences of Jamaica’s reliance on the tourism industry and will finally look at tourism in relation to capitalism, with Robert Fletcher suggesting in his article that the tourism industry (and more specifically...