Surviving this recession will require sensible macro-economic policies; consensus between the Government and the Opposition; and the ability of the private sector to engage the state in serious dialogue that is conducive to investments, production and growth. At present, not enough is being done to swim against the tide of the world crisis.

Returning to the old-fashioned 1970s way of surviving hardships as suggested by Esther Tyson in her contribution to The Sunday Gleaner (May 3) will not work. Those "good old days" will be difficult to restore in present-day Jamaica, where pride and independence are entrenched in the psyche of our people. Giving up the privilege to drive in comfort and privacy of one's own vehicle to and from work is not something I see Jamaicans agreeing on. We are not together as a people; and we have never been, except for times when we celebrate the success of our athletes and entertainers. If our politicians can't work together for a common cause, why should we expect the people who support them to do so?

Good start

The ability to grow our own food is a good start to counter this recession. But we can't afford to do so when it makes much more economic sense to import at cheaper cost. There is hardly any incentive to grow our own foods. With fertiliser price almost the price of one week's labour, how would the poor, unemployed and minimum-wage workers subsist in this regard? We should have been preaching this message 40 years ago. By now, we would have been more competitive in the market place.

The Government may have to face the reality that the structure of our economy is no longer viable. Agriculture is in trouble and the mining and bauxite sectors, is on the decline. Our economy shouldn't be dependent on whether people visit here or not. We have to look at other areas where we can be economically competitive. If we have to shift to a more industrialised economy, then that is what we have to do. At whatever cost.

I am, etc.,

CONREY HANSON

conreyhanson@yahoo.com