HOW IS T&T'S ECONOMY FEARING?

[God is Great]

shatup nah Hellsbola

[rfari]

Former Central Bank governor: Cut fuel subsidy, Gate



Reshma Ragoonath
Published:
Saturday, August 23, 2014

Former Central Bank governor Ewart Williams
If government is serious about fiscal sustainability, it must have the political will to make difficult decisions, such as cutting the fuel subsidy and Gate. Former Central Bank governor Ewart Williams made this point yesterday as he addressed a pre-budget seminar at Guardian Media Ltd’s training room, Guardian building, St Vincent Street, Port-of-Spain, which was attended by GML managing director Lisa Agard, editors and journalists.

Williams said as Finance Minister Larry Howai gets set to deliver the 2014/2015 national budget on September 8, he must consider what are the Government’s priorities and its fiscal policy. He said Gate (Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses Programme) is costing Government $4.5 billion annually and that is “unsustainable.” However, he said, the issue of Gate has now become a major political issue that has to be addressed, but everyone is afraid to address it.

“We have to look at the options; Should it be a loan? Should it cover certain subjects? Should there be a means test? These are the difficult issues we must confront and talk about,” he said. The fuel subsidy, he said, is another issue which no government wants to address and successive governments “keep kicking the can along” to the other. “We all know what needs to be done. We need to get the political will to address it and we need to start talking about it,” said Williams.

Tax reform, he said, was needed. Government, he added, had to do a lot through expenditure reform. “That is where the difficult discussion lies.” Williams said T&T was in a good position to experience more growth in 2014 after recording two per cent growth in 2013 and a four to five per cent reduction in debt which is “manageable.” However, Williams hastened to add, “All that glitters is not gold. The economy still depends disproportionately on the energy sector.”

T&T’s debt to GDP (gross domestic product), he said, is in a better position than most countries in the Caribbean. In 2013 it stood at 33.7 per cent in T&T as opposed to 109.8 per cent in Grenada and 126.4 per cent in Barbados. This percentage, he said, must continue to decline. “The worst economic problem a country could face is a debt crisis and it is in our interest to keep our debt structure manageable,” he said.

He T&T is in a position where “we should be working at fiscal sustainability. We should be moving towards putting our fiscal house in order.” Fiscal sustainability, he said, is where T&T has a system that could carry the economy along when there is no more oil and gas, a system where the revenue side is buoyant (responds to economic growth) and the debt is under control. However, he said strong fiscal and monetary policies are needed to get to that point.

Williams also stressed the need for more transparency in the budget presentation, which should include a debt table. He said citizens deserve to know how T&T is repaying the loans it took to finance public sector projects. “What are all the loans we as a country have to be paying? That is not unreasonable to be asking. Tell us about wages, about the taxes, but what are all the loans we are paying and how much are we paying?” he said. These figures, he said, should be included in the national budget or a supplementary document.

He also expressed concern about the lack of regulation of casinos, which, he said, “are efficient avenues of money laundering and that kind of business must be related to the demand for foreign exchange. “Any business that only deals in cash transactions must be audited on a weekly, even daily basis. Human nature is such that no one is going to report every cash transaction,” he added.

[God is Great]

Seta rubish dah rusty iron pipe that he fadda put in years ago does b leaking

[rfari]

I have said it time and time again... tertiary education should have remained the dollar for dollar... Dont know what PNM were thinking...

Secondly,,, the money spent on laptops ... is pure ass

These two intiatives will cost the public purse too much and they have minimal return...
Hope they cut them both...

The fuel subsidy must be cut... and a highway tax implemented...
Revenues through taxation must be increased...

the country in a hot mess.. We may have to borrow from IDB,WB AND IMF come 2016..... after the election... and cut public spending...

2015 Budget may be very well about spending the last set of oil boom money from the last patos admin.
Buckle yuh seatbelts guy... downsizing of the public sector.. freeze on wages... may ...may .. very well be on the horizon..

HOPE WE FIND SOME MORE SWEET CRUDE!!

While things need to be changed I think you might be overreacting a bit. Borrow money from IMF? Why? Things may not be perfect but we certainly are a long ways off from having to turn to an entity like the IMF. Debt to GDP is 33.7 and dropping.

Subsidies must be cut yes but GATE is a scapegoat imo as there is much more reckless wastage in other areas. The fuel subsidy alone dwarfs GATE by about 4 times yet we speak about GATE as if it's THE biggest albatross. It's not. GATE needs to be managed better. Dollar for dollar for some and full subsidy for some. Can be decided via a means test. Even so, GATE was allocated $650 million in 2013. Even if you drastically cut that in half versus say trying to cut the subsidy on fuel in half the savings do not compare.

The real push should be with respect to fuels. Even so, something must be put in place to wean the population slowly. If the government was really serious they would move prices of super and diesel up in very small increments (e.g. 25 cent increase per litre) and actually complete the CNG push they like to talk about. More stations, incentives for people to switch. Mandate that maxi taxis be converted to cng. Heck bite the bullet and switch it out for the maxi owners if need be at a cost to the government. Payback for that would not be long. Mass transit is another option that should be looked at but before we talk about just cutting this and that left, right and centre we should think about the implications of cutting these services and the impact on persons who already under pressure.

Reference: http://www.trinidadexpress.com/business ... 71821.html

[janfar]

Who is the cacahole that get ban recently and creating all the Ms. man accounts??? He mammy leave him unsupervised today so she could go by the outside man orwha???

[Crackpot]

Like the mods sleeping in this ched too or what ?

Dis needs to be locked and all those new accounts need to be banned

Outta-timin ppl again

[mero]

Permaban wave coming soon

[K74T]

Already started

[Paratrooper]

Over the wall and there we saw you.

Just like this Govt, these bollas dont know how to deal with anything other than to ban.

Fortunately, everyone is entitled to their own little virtual space, but not when you MoeLesting children and promoting d scum in society.

[rspann]

cussin and insulting but talking about God and sinners,well yes!

[Paratrooper]

tell it to ur media pals

[kjaglal76v2]

[whyteliver]

if politicians stop the thieving we should be good...

[fouljuice]

I have said it time and time again... tertiary education should have remained the dollar for dollar...

Secondly,,, the money spent on laptops ... is pure ass

These two intiatives will cost the public purse too much and they have minimal return...
Hope they cut them both...

The fuel subsidy must be cut... and a highway tax implemented...
Revenues through taxation must be increased...

the country in a hot mess.. We may have to borrow from IDB,WB AND IMF come 2016..... after the election... and cut public spending...

Buh dan, if they listen to you and do all those things you mention....what make you feel that the extra money not going and end up in somebody else pocket, as it almost always does?

[Paratrooper]

The wrong chickens in the round coups

[kaylex]

hmn,,,... all yuh fellas good oui... fuel subsidy must get touched in the long run.. but the state has to implement a more efficient public transportation system..

PTSC.. IS VOMIT

GATE has to be touched also... I prefer the means test.. where you qualify for full tuition paid by the state... and revolving loans to finance for those who cant afford... most people who get free tertiary education know nothing of the ethos of hard work... and they are the monsters who believe they entitled to high salaries with no working experience or period whereby they prove themselves in the working environment...

free laptops will also have to be revisited in the long run.....

most of the guys right.. at the end of the day too much leakages is what affecting us negatively.. especially as it relates to PSIPS

[desifemlove]

doh tink it scared/fraid anyting...

But i'd say OK at best:

- GDP growth - adequate, only based on improved global economy and demand for gas/oil
- Unemployment - OK
- Inflation - OK, but then need more locally grown crops to reduce food price vulnerability
- Balance of payments - doh matter, demand for oil and gas strong until they perfect nuclear fusion....

FDI is weak.,....bar fast food and oil and gas, not many firms come here.

Manufacturing growth is weak, must be some scope for some heavy industry somewhere.

Services is OK, I guess.

HDI rating has fallen.

The exchange rate/regime is OK.

Need to watch out for Guyana as it's another source of gas/oil imports for CARICOM.

I giving UNC/Kamla 5/10 for economic management. OK, but only cos de world economy doing better, not anyting dey done.

[desifemlove]

I have said it time and time again... tertiary education should have remained the dollar for dollar... Dont know what PNM were thinking...

Secondly,,, the money spent on laptops ... is pure ass

These two intiatives will cost the public purse too much and they have minimal return...
Hope they cut them both...

The fuel subsidy must be cut... and a highway tax implemented...
Revenues through taxation must be increased...

On what? has to be selective.....

the country in a hot mess.. We may have to borrow from IDB,WB AND IMF come 2016..... after the election... and cut public spending...

2015 Budget may be very well about spending the last set of oil boom money from the last patos admin.
Buckle yuh seatbelts guy... downsizing of the public sector.. freeze on wages... may ...may .. very well be on the horizon..

HOPE WE FIND SOME MORE SWEET CRUDE!!

Downsize? I'd say privatise a lot of it....

Why is FCB for instance state-owned? people ball out privatising it...but then RCB is state-owned? Scotia? too many tings govt. doh need, we does have.

[88sins]

when they start lockin up the theivin politicians or said individuals stop misappropriating state funds & start spending said funds for the betterment of the general population, not just padna, brethren nani, nana & beta , THEN they could talk about removing fuel subsidies, GATE or whatever else they want to play with. Less money stolen from the public=more to spend on the public where needed

to remove such things while they continue to perform the backside, stealing everything that isn't bolted to the floor, would create even more socio-economic difficulties for the lower, lower-middle & middle class income earners, & that doesn't ever end well in the long run

people should know what it is to EARN what they want & have, & that goes from the top to the bottom, from the President to the vagrant sleepin in the fridge box &^ everybody in between. But these alleged leaders in T&T have no intention or desire to lead by example.

Remove subs, & leave the politicians there still rapin the treasury with no regard to the rest of us? How long allyuh feel it would take before this country end up like Guyana? or even Haiti?

[desifemlove]

I'd agree with a means test....

if yuh parents rich, yuh ent needing GATE as much as a poor student from Morvant or a next poor student from Tabaquite...works in most other countries, get over it..lol...Just state parents' income and/or savings if needed, and this is better.

[Redman]

As much as it's nice to benefit by having nice cheap fuel, that only encourages wasting it or illegally selling it in other countries on the black market. That said I'm hoping to get a diesel pickup soon. (So knowing my luck the price will increase soon)

I agree in principle
So lets see
PM Chambers read the Ballah Report into Parliament-the report was the product of the COE into the allegations of corruption under the Govt at the time.

The Ballah Report estimated that 2 out of 3 of our PetroDollars generated up to that time were stolen/wasted in corrupted deals.

The COE into the Airport stated that the cost of the airport was 1.6B but they estimate the actual cost is 600M

So we have a constant...66% of the available revenue is siphoned off for illegitimate use.
out of the 4 B in subsidy that would be 2.4B stolen.

I have not seen any one held to account.

Up to and until we as a people are sure that something concrete has been done about the flagrant wastage of our resources-leave the benefits that people enjoy alone.

by my calculations under the Petroleum Levy and Subsidy Act,oil producers pay about 500M towards the subsidization of liquid fuels.

[bluefete]

I'd agree with a means test....

if yuh parents rich, yuh ent needing GATE as much as a poor student from Morvant or a next poor student from Tabaquite...works in most other countries, get over it..lol...Just state parents' income and/or savings if needed, and this is better.

Economist: Time to change Gate funding

Shaliza Hassanali
Published:
Sunday, August 24, 2014

Economist Dr Roger Hosein says the Government needs to be more prudent in its delivery of the Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses (Gate) programme. He said it should consider an income contingent loan programme or a graduate tax programme so students repay the fees for their tertiary level education. Hosein said tertiary level funding must be approached differently in the 2014-2015 fiscal budget, which would be presented by Finance Minister Larry Howai on September 8.

While Gate has helped improve tertiary level education (TLE), Hosein said there was need for streamlining of the programme “to ensure some degree of alignment of free tertiary level education to the longer term structural needs of the economy.” In the last eight years, $4.5 billion has been spent on Gate. The figure jumped from $102.1 million in 2004-2005 to $757.6 million in 2012-2013, mainly due to an increase in students’ enrolment, Hosein said.

“It is difficult to say that past governments have pumped too much into Gate. What I would say is that we need to consider more sustainable options to fund TLE without marginalizing students from lower income groups.” Although Gate has increased the number of tertiary level students, “it did not dramatically improve the overall growth performance of the economy, after 2008 in particular, when it was most needed,” he said.

In addition, he said, Gate had not as yet translated into a diversified production base for the economy and some sectors remained underserved. “We seem to be still importing nurses and doctors. However, this may also be due to migration in part because Gate is not linked strategically to the development process but is rather a universal approach to TLE. Funding those areas that have peculiar needs or needs that require a greater degree of emphasis may be underserved,” he said

Hosein said his main concern was that Gate was vertically inefficient. “This means that some people get more funding than they need. In the case of T&T, some evidence of vertical inefficiency is seen in the type of households accessing Gate. “It can be seen that income groups earning $9,000 or more access Gate funding at a higher percentage than those in which the income group is less than $9,000.”

Of particular interest, Hosein said, was the income group $17,000 to $18,999, of which 7.9 per cent accessed Gate funding, while only 0.5 per cent of the income group earning less than $1,000 accessed Gate.

Hosein does not believe the Government should scrap Gate.
“No. It can’t be that simplistic. I commend Tertiary Education Minister Fazal Karim for all the innovative changes he has brought on stream so far. “Tertiary level funding in my view just has to be approached differently. The word scrapped is too dramatic.”

Hosein said the economy was at a crossroad and “it’s time to cut back on the huge transfers and subsidy outlay that the State currently undertakes.”

http://www.guardian.co.tt/news/2014-08- ... te-funding

[hustla_ambition101]

Gate used to have a means test back when it was 50/50, they should revert to that. They also need to stop funding those jokey diplomas and short courses. An independent firm, preferably international also needs to access the benefits of gate to the overall economy and country because we still have thousands of university graduates who are underemployed and unemployed although statistics conjured up by those in authority say otherwise as they counting ojt as employment. We also have those who taking tuition and migrating without the mandatory service included in the contract.

[The_Honourable]

I want to know how we getting back money from students who benefited from GATE and bailed out the country without giving national service. I woulda mark dey passport.

[Paratrooper]

Education should be free, there are too many scumbags that need cleaning out rather than focusing on the youth

[Crescendo Dîáz]

Staying within the concept of a free economy, it is up to the Government and their people to create an environment that would attract these educated migrants to stay, rather than try to force the good people to work under a slave system.

[jm3]

I'd agree with a means test....

if yuh parents rich, yuh ent needing GATE as much as a poor student from Morvant or a next poor student from Tabaquite...works in most other countries, get over it..lol...Just state parents' income and/or savings if needed, and this is better.

This isn't fair why should hard working people who have paid huge amounts of tax over their life times not be allowed to send there children for higher education
the same as someone who has not paid as much tax.
i think it should be proportional the more tax that has been paid in the more that you are allowed access to that makes it fair and also will give people more incentive to pay tax.

[DVSTT]

I'd agree with a means test....

if yuh parents rich, yuh ent needing GATE as much as a poor student from Morvant or a next poor student from Tabaquite...works in most other countries, get over it..lol...Just state parents' income and/or savings if needed, and this is better.

This isn't fair why should hard working people who have paid huge amounts of tax over their life times not be allowed to send there children for higher education
the same as someone who has not paid as much tax.
i think it should be proportional the more tax that has been paid in the more that you are allowed access to that makes it fair and also will give people more incentive to pay tax.

This!

[Redman]

Because the program is to ENABLE those who cannot afford an education to have the option.
The concept of those who have the ability taking advantage of social services is wrong-and leads toe the programs being to expensive to continue.

[DVSTT]

Because the program is to ENABLE those who cannot afford an education to have the option.
The concept of those who have the ability taking advantage of social services is wrong-and leads toe the programs being to expensive to continue.

That's not fair. Obviously persons who make higher incomes pay more taxes so why should their kids not be entitled to the same privileges as persons who pay less taxes? Once the persons are performing and not wasting gate funding jumping from degree to degree or failing courses I don't see why they should be penalized.