IN the foreseeable future, a lot of ink and airtime will no doubt be dedicated to unravelling the implications of U.S. President Donald Trump’s bombshell announcements on what he called “Liberation Day.” Tariffs, the president’s favourite word, reverberated around the world last week and set off a mood of panic, fear, anxiety and dumbfounded confusion.

In response to Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, Guyana’s VP Bharrat Jagdeo and Prime Minister Mia Mottley of Barbados demonstrated a mood of calm optimism. In his weekly press conference, Jagdeo emphasised the “strategic importance of the U.S. market” and expressed a desire to work with Washington to both “protect Guyanese trade interests” and “resolve any misunderstandings” over the actual amount of the U.S trade deficit with Guyana.

“There is no need to panic,” said Jagdeo, exuding a mood of confidence that comes from a truck full of deliberate policies, programmes and initiatives enacted under the stewardship of the PPP/C in the last five years. While the VP was speaking in Georgetown, President Irfaan Ali was in California to receive the prestigious Global Leadership Award for Open Innovation for 2024, an honour conferred on world leaders by the University of California, Berkeley.

As the world listened to President Trump unveil his list of countries that will be slapped with reciprocal tariffs beginning this week, my thoughts went back to the early 1980s and the vision of President Ronald Reagan.  I was an undergraduate student of political science and history at York University in Toronto, and one of my first essays was an analysis of the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI).

President Reagan’s 1982 speech to the U.S. Congress about the CBI outlined a comprehensive programme aimed at stabilising and revitalising the economies of the Caribbean and Central American countries. The CBI reflected a long-term U.S. commitment to fostering freedom, stability, and development in the hemisphere.

Recognising that Caribbean nations were facing unprecedented economic and political crises, President Reagan emphasised the strategic importance of the region to U.S. interests and proposed a mix of free-trade benefits, tax incentives, and $350 million in emergency aid to support democratic institutions, promote private sector growth and counter the influence of extremist ideologies.

In her recent speech, Prime Minister Mottley noted the import dependence of CARICOM economies, made even more vulnerable because of the region’s reliance on goods that pass through or come from the U.S.

VP Jagdeo and PM Mottley promised to engage in diplomatic negotiations with the U.S. over the new tariffs, while also reminding Washington of the principles first outlined by President Reagan that underscored the CBI. “Caribbean nations are not enemies, but friends and family of the U.S., with deep personal and cultural ties,” PM Mottley said.

The CBI has hit a number of hiccups in the decades since it was launched. It is important to point out that Guyana and the nations that make up CARICOM are not in the same turbulent waters they were in the early 1980s and that’s an important distinction.

For example, President Ali’s initiative of 25 percent lower foreign food imports by 2025 was designed with the purpose of accelerating investments in domestic food and agricultural production.  As the current Chair of CARICOM, Mottley encouraged the citizens of the region to choose local and healthy food items over imported processed goods.

In the last five years, Guyana has been diversifying its international trade partnerships with Africa, Latin America, Canada, the UK and the European Union. Just two days ago, the EU ambassador to Guyana encouraged local producers to take advantage of the duty-free and tariff-free access granted to CARICOM states when exporting to the EU. Recognising the challenges of meeting and exceeding EU standards on imported food items, ambassador René van Nes offered training courses for local manufacturers. These initiatives don’t happen in a vacuum.

It took APNU+AFC three days to take a break from their internal squabbling over a power-sharing agreement to issue a statement on the tariffs that was most likely written by the coalition’s so-called economist Elson Lowe, which is to say, it made no sense. When it comes to Trump’s tariffs, the language of PNC+APNU+AFC is nothing but idle prattle.

The AFC’s Nigel Hughes is a sophist who attempts to make clever arguments that are devoid of relevant facts. I’ve had the opportunity to observe his performances in various courtrooms, which have lately become his favourite campaign stops.  When it comes to Trump’s tariffs, he appeals for national unity and a process of public consultation. It all sounds rich, but listen carefully, and all you’ll hear is the echo of his own voice.

It’s no different with Aubrey Norton; while senior stalwarts of the PNC have recently resigned in disgust over Norton’s dismal leadership, i.e. Amna Ally and Vanessa Kissoon, amusingly, Norton continues to point to himself as “a competent and strategic leader.”

Contrast that with the approach of the PPP/C which reflects a message infused with hope, optimism and a reliance on the merits of the tremendous socio-economic strides this government has achieved in just five years.

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited.