Dearest
Virgin Islanders:
Today is a wonderful day! Today we announce and celebrate the
formation of the United States Virgin Islands Coalition for
Sustainable Economic Development, Inc. (VISED). This organization
is a non-profit, charitable entity formulated to help develop
a workable planning model for the coordinated development of
economic policy for the territory. It is our goal to bring interested
citizens, businesses, industry and community leaders together
to seriously discuss and formulate a comprehensive plan for
improvement and expansion of our economic base. We also want
to ensure that the Virgin Islands people have a voice in discussions
of Caribbean and Latin American economic policy issues. For
far too long the Virgin Islands has been silent on the world
stage.
Apolitical, our only aim is to get the Virgin Islands repositioned
in a progressive direction. We must be poised to act quickly
to combat unexpected incidences that negatively impact our tourism
industry. We would like to expand and diversify our economic
base. An example of this is the creation of a U.S. Virgin Islands
Capital Market to attract investments. We would like our community
and our governmental systems to be more business-friendly and
accommodating of outside investment. We would like to work with
our government officials to address the issues that are important
to our membership and to offer the expertise that VISED can
glean from the experts hired.
For any plan to work, all persons affected must buy into its
viability. To accomplish this feat, we must address the social
environment, the financial environment, the political environment,
and the international commercial environment. Comprehensive
economic planning will result in Government efficiency, economic
expansion, greater avenues for employment, and hence a better
standard of living for all island residents.
We live in an ever-more competitive world, fueled by the global
marketplace and it's players that rival Goliath. To survive,
we cannot continue to operate "as usual." If we sit
back while the world is spinning at warp speed around us, we
will justly deserve the name once hurled at us as being "the
breadbasket of America." As a Frederiksted, St. Croix.
native, and a proud Virgin Islander, I know we can do better.
I trust that you too share our vision for improvement and will
join us as we forge a path together for the betterment of these
islands we truly love so dearly.
