|
Certainly, the priorities are many, and I was quite pleased to hear the new Prime minister espousing the most urgent, including: a return to our traditional core values, the transformation of the education system, job creation, the eradication of corruption, the respect for the rights of all Jamaicans and the sustained reduction of crime and violence.
Since all life is sacred and the right to life is the most central of all human rights, it is reasonable to conclude that the reduction of crime and violence in Jamaica must be paramount. By now it should be quite clear to ALL OF US that none of us in Jamaica is immune to the effects of crime and violence. No class is exempt, no community is beyond reach, and no family is untouched. People from all strata of society had been victims in the recent past. Don’t we think our continued apathy could lead to our beloved family members, friends, colleagues, clients, our religious brothers and sisters to become the next crime victim? Just imagine for a while the hurt, the anger and the excruciating pain we would all experience if any of these dearest person becomes the next victim.
I must again ask the question: How many more Jamaicans will have to die before the entire society unites against this seemingly out of control crime phenomena? Many commentators, political, civic, religious and business leaders are calling for this unity and strongly espousing the necessity for such. Will the new Prime minister take up the challenge by becoming this irrepressible, passionate and committed leader? She certainly commands the respect, the authority and the credibility of the broader society and thus should be well placed to bring the nation as one collective entity in the war against the forces of evil that threatens ALL OF US.
Let us all stop for a minute from our busy schedules and count the losses to this country. Think about the young bright children whose lives were callously snuffed out by senseless killers. When we think of all the outstanding academics, world leading sportsmen and women, first class journalists, great musicians, and world class business icons that Jamaica produced, who knows what they might have accomplished for this country and the world.
The levels of crime and violence and the social and political tensions of communities make the threat to peace and inner-city business stability and business expansion a real deterrent. A prerequisite of urban renewal success is the reduction of crime and violence: High levels of criminality are antithetical in the process of development that requires orderliness, social cohesion, and a stable environment. This involves dismantling current parallel governance structures, which undermine legal authority and are challenges to general law and order. The deep entrenchment of extortion fees charged by the community leaders presents a major financial cost to the few community businesses that currently exist and will serve as a deterrent to new business entrants.
Factors Against Business Expansion in Crime-torn Communities
WHILE INNER-CITY COMMUNITIES of the Kingston Metro-politan Area are densely populated with residents of a wide variety of income sources, business research has proven that many of the small inner-city communities are not large enough to attract new retail entrants. Based on the data examined in recent research in the Kingston Metropolitan Area, the scope for business investment is limited for a number of reasons:
The prevalence of politically polarized and geographically secluded communities means most communities are closed to the outside world and therefore, 'cross-border trading' or cross-community transactions are not feasible. Therefore, these small communities will have to wield significant spending power to sustain a medium-size profitable operation. This entry barrier nullifies the general 'density of population' theory that characterized most North American inner-city neighbourhoods.
Given the high levels of unemployment that characterize these inner-city communities coupled with the inconsistent and sometimes questionable income sources of some residents, investors would consider entry into these inner-city communities as imprudent and unsustainable. Therefore, the unpredictable nature of the local economies in the inner city discourages current business leaders from further investment and deters new ones.
Many of these communities are residential and non-commercial zones, so there is a scarcity of space and business locations to operate legal entities.
The high levels of illiteracy, poor work ethic and low skill levels are inimical to good business prospects and bad indicators to those who already operate there in relation to further expansion. The labour force must be trained in relevant skills with flexibility to fit in many job functions.
Critical Success Factors for Inner-city Business Expansion
Insight into the shopping behaviour of inner-city residents is critical to business expansion, economic development and job creation in Jamaica. However, economic expansion can only be fully realized when entrepreneurs duly respect all their customers and acknowledge their value to the success of their businesses. This will provide the basis for accurate segmentation of the market, thus customers would be targeted with the right products and services that will provide optimum utility and profit to both customers and business entrepreneurs.
Findings from research studies conducted in the USA, Canada, and recently in Jamaica demystify the myth that inner-city shoppers are too poor to be even recognized as a distinct market segment. This glaring misunderstanding of the inner-city market existence and behaviour prohibits business leaders from studying and understanding this grossly undervalued market and thus limits their expansion.
Among the varied reasons for this misunderstanding is the failure of marketers to recognize that the inner-city consumer has real spending power with real money to shop and that the inner-city market is characteristically different from the traditional urban market.
What drives the inner-city poor to consume brand-name clothes against making healthier choices about food? Every human being wants to feel important, every human being wants to be respected, thus people will make the sacrifice to acquire brand-name products that will convey prestige.
To the residents of the inner city, shopping is a form of recreation that provides enjoyment. However, based on numerous research studies, they seem to look forward to it more than the average shopper and enjoy it for a lot more reasons than for its acquisitive sake.
What's important, however, is that the inner-city inhabitant's love for shopping and the feel-good factor derived from wearing recognizable high-quality brands have positive implications for retail-market expansion in the commercial districts of urban centers, greater market access to shoppers and a wider variety of product offerings by retailers for inner-city shoppers.
The typical inner-city shopper shows a strong preference for shopping in the large shopping malls rather than in the neighbourhood shops. These residents view shopping more as a leisure activity that provides the opportunity to socially interact with members of the broader society. Shopping is a form of recreation that provides enjoyment and relaxation. It gives them the chance to freely express themselves, to feel socially included and feel a part of the festive experience of shopping. The typical inner-city resident sees shopping as he or she sees migrating: A chance to 'escape from the prison' of his or her communities and be a part of the broader society.
The owners of capital and the people in positions of influence and leadership must facilitate social and economic transformation through investment in the country’s social capital, knowledge-based industries and enterprises that are labour-intensive. The government must recognize that job creation and job growth must be close companions with economic growth and economic development. Therefore, tax and other incentives must be offered to new and established entities that generate jobs.
Academic and training institutions must chart the course in equipping students not only for the job market but also entry into joint ventures, franchising, professional partnerships and business ownership. This drive must be facilitated and financed by the government, multi-lateral developmental agencies, international donors, faith-based institutions and the private sector. Capital must be accessible to and reasonably priced for entrepreneurs so that their ideas can be transformed into profitable job-creating enterprises.
Work is an absolute necessity in keeping youth discipline, responsible, hopeful and ambitious. When young people have a legitimate source of income, they are in a much better position to say no to greedy and blood-thirsty crime bosses.
I pray that the seemingly visionary Mrs. Portia Simpson-Miller, who herself came from the bowels of the working class and currently heads a garrison-type inner-city constituency, will lead a proactive government and mobilize an inspired and united Jamaica to move expeditiously to halt the moral and economic slide that threatens the Caribbean's paradise. Continuous talk and no focused action will threaten the entire society, therefore, it is a war in which we must all enlists, a battle we must all engage and a fight we must win.
[Back
to Main Page]
|
