Why does it often take people or interests outside Jamaica to come up with solutions that we need here at home? For years I have been asking why we need to import so much oil when Jamaica has sunlight 365 days of the year. For years I have been asking why more effort was not put into exploring the possibility of creating a solar farm here in Jamaica that would provide energy for a significant portion of the Jamaican community. So you can imagine my delight and relief when I read in The Gleaner this week that the Canada-based Salomon Energy Group plans to invest CDN$450 million or about J$35 billion building a solar-energy farm right here in Jamaica that will provide about 60 megawatts of energy.

So, assuming our government doesn't do something ridiculous to undermine the project, we should have an alternative source of energy at our disposal in the near future. What is equally important is that the project will create jobs and continue to create jobs within the Jamaican economy as investments such as these often lead to the development of a lot of support industries. So providing we can find the requisite skill sets here, unemployment should take a decent dip once the project gets under way and which I hope will be soon; like this year.

What is interesting is the cost. Does that amount of money sound familiar? CDN$450 million or about US$444 million is pretty close to the amount of money that Jamaica was loaned by the Chinese government under the Jamaica Infrastructure Development Programme (JDIP), money that was supposed to be spent over five years but we are hearing this week is all but spent after only two. If Jamaica is to truly benefit from this venture which is supposed to be a private/public one, Salomon needs to ensure that none of our politicians are able in any way to determine how and when that money is spent in building the solar farm. They must not have a hand in determining whose land is being purchased, they must not have a say in which contractors are used in the construction and they must not have a say in who is employed.

meaningful investment

Jamaica desperately needs an investment such as this for many reasons and those include its ability to attract other investments whether similar in nature or otherwise to this country that is starved of really meaningful foreign-direct investment. We need investments that will employ both blue-collar and white-collar workers. We need investments that will help stimulate growth in the economy and give rise to a better standard of living for all. And that's why local bureaucrats need not have anything to do with this solar project.

Their involvement will mean unnecessary delays, cost overruns, ridiculous demands from unions that could double or triple the projected expenditure and eventually drive the investors away. When you look at what happened with JDIP and other similar programmes that have been employed over the years to improve Jamaica's crumbling infrastructure, you can't help but wonder if our politicians are not predisposed to not positioning this country to succeed.

Many of them are like starving wolves that come up on a rotting carcass. Their only interest is to fill their own stomachs, even if it means leaving the bare bones for the rest of us. No, they should not be involved in this solar-farm project because that would be like rubbing butter pan pus mouth all over again.

PS: By the way, kudos to JLP Member of Parliament Everald Warmington for calling the JDIP debacle exactly what it is: scandalous. I wish more politicians had similar cojones.

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