Roads Remain a Challenge in Antigua and Barbuda

Prime Minister Gaston Browne has said that the country’s roads remain a major challenge, not because his administration has neglected them, but because they were ignored for far too long. Unusual extreme weather events have taken a harsh toll. 

Nonetheless, he promised residents that his government would continue to pay focused attention to our main arteries and recently purchased $21 million of heavy equipment to accelerate the reconstruction of our roads, especially our community roads. 

Meanwhile, Browne says Antigua and Barbuda is an island where the society imports most of the commodities it needs, including food products.

In recent years, particularly, as costs have risen globally, the country has been importing the increased costs of its major trading partners, which has raised prices for all of us.

“Fortunately, we are beginning to enjoy a stabilization in prices, which had previously galloped to six percent earlier this year.  As a caring administration, we did not wait for this imported inflation to fall to address this problem, but increased the wages, salaries and pensions of public servants, even in difficult financial circumstances. By doing so, we eased the pressure of imported inflationary costs,” he adds

“We also gave an example to the private sector to share its profits with the consumer by curtailing the extent of profit margins. We did so on the basis that the private sector will sustain itself and prosper, if it maintains a large and steady clientele; if prices push purchasers out of the market, the private sector will quickly decline,” he added

Browne said he also hopes that the private sector would follow the government’s example by improving wages and salaries, rewarding their staff for productivity and encouraging them to help enlarge businesses and improve service to the society as a whole.

“Our collective success depends on more than just government action.

It requires the effort of every citizen, every business, and every worker to contribute to a more productive and thriving society. We should draw inspiration from small nations like Singapore and South Korea – places that, despite their size, have achieved extraordinary economic progress through dedication, discipline, and a shared vision for the future,” he added

Like these nations, according to PM Browne, Antigua and Barbuda can rise to new heights, not by relying exclusively on external support, but by harnessing the potential within our borders.

“When we work together to improve productivity, when businesses reward hard work and invest in their people, and when each of us takes responsibility for our role in the economy, we strengthen not just our prosperity but our independence,” he said