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When Antonio Romero speaks of the Caribbean, He does not do it with nostalgia or academic distance. His tone is that of someone who lives the region as
When Antonio Romero speaks of the Caribbean, He does not do it with nostalgia or academic distance. His tone is that of someone who lives the region as a body and urgency.
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Doctor of Science, professor at the University of Havana and president of the Norman Girvan Chair of Studies of the Caribbean, Romero participated in the General Assembly of CLACSO in Bogotá and then traveled to the University of Cartagena and the Simón Bolívar University of Barranquilla to share their analysis with students from the Doctorate in Society and Culture Caribbean.
In dialogue with time, Romero does not hesitate to warn about the consequences that recent decisions of the government of The United States are having in the region.
«The first thing to say is that there is a high level of uncertainty. And that, in itself, has a negative impact,» he emphasizes. «It affects economic predictability, investment, social behavior. That mist on.»
Although some effects are not yet completely measurable, Romero is emphatic: the new US foreign policy Tourism, vital for many economies in the region, and foreign trade.
«Tariffs have been imposed, confidence in the rules of multilateral trade have been broken. Caribbean economies are small, highly sensitive. This leaves them without oxygen,» he says with concern.
But the biggest blow, he says, has been in the environmental field. Romero does not go with Rodeos: “The United States Departure from the Paris Agreement has caused a withdrawal of private banks that financed green projects. For the island Caribbean, This is an existential threat. ”
The region has witnessed an intensification of extreme phenomena, more frequent and powerful hurricanes, prolonged droughts, torrential rains, but also of silent and cumulative impacts, such as coastal erosion and salinization of agricultural land.
The economist Antonio Romero was in Barranquilla at the Caribbean Society and Culture Doctorate. Photo:Unisimon
«They are small economies with very limited territorial territorial or extension, salinization for an agricultural system that is very vulnerable to compromise food. That is life or death,» he warns.
And there is more: Sargazo’s mass arrival, that brown macroalga that invades the beaches and paralyzes tourism; The irruption of lionfish, which unbalances marine ecosystems. Everything is part of an overflowing climate picture.
“They are elements that account for the enormous vulnerability of the insular Caribbean to climate change. The withdrawal of the United States Government of Agreement Paris and of its financing commitments for the Caribbean countries is a central element of concern. ”
The review of international cooperation by the US government has also left deep cracks. USAID, one of the main aid agencies, has been dismantled and subordinated to the State Department, which has meant the closure of multiple programs.
The forecast foresee a ‘hyperactive season’ with at least 25 storms with name. Photo:Istock
«In some countries, such as Cuba, Usaid was always seen as an instrument of interference. But in other cases, he helped with health, education, inclusion,» Matizes Romero. «Not everything is black or white.»
For many Island Caribbean territories, especially the most impoverished, the disappearance of this financing has meant an abrupt brake in social programs that benefited vulnerable populations.
«USAID financed some programs in Caribbean countries, associated with attacking health, education, social inclusion problems and obviously for these programs the disappearance of American financing is negative, ”he laments.
As if it did not suffice with refinancing and climate chaos, the region also faces a growing wave of violence. Romero draws a raw map:
Sea algae are organisms that move due to high water temperatures. Photo:Istock
«Many small Caribbean states have become drug trafficking runners and people traffic. The insecurity became dominant. ”
And, although it recognizes institutional weaknesses in security, insists that there are deeper causes.
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«This has to do with the increase in poverty, unemployment, informality, lack of opportunities, especially among young people,» he explains. «When a culture of consumption without access is installed, crime becomes a tempting route. It is a model that easily reproduces in despair contexts.»
Romero talks about a torn Caribbean, «where states have lost fiscal space, where there is no one to respond to people.» But also appeals to a less defeatist look: the need for regional integration, cooperation and critical citizenship.
Miguel Uribe, prayers continue. Photo:
