Every new year dawns pregnant with a great deal of optimism and hope. 2016 is not to be denied this. Many of us will be glad that 2015 is now behind us. We can now feed on the optimism of renewed hope we now have with new opportunities to achieve what we failed to in the past year. 

Of course, there is that nagging caveat that such achievements will not be possible without a redoubling of effort, a greater and fiercer determination to succeed, and a more expert management of our expectations. It is in the management of our expectations or, better yet, other people’s expectations of us, that hope can become fulfilment and dreams reality.

Expectations, like beauty, are in the eyes or mind of the beholder. Members of the Government will tell us that the expectations of fiscal prudence are being met as there are clear signs that the macro-economic targets are moving in the right direction. This column is on record in commending this People’s National Party (PNP) Administration, and especially the minister of finance, Dr Peter Phillips, for sticking to their guns and taking the hard and, perhaps in some instances, embarrassing decisions that were necessary to achieve these gains. But what might be reasons for rejoicing for the Government and its supporters are nothing but frustration, pain and resentment for many who have had to bear the heat and burden of the adjustments.

To be certain, the single most important challenge that faces the Government is how to translate these macro-economic gains into micro-gains that the ordinary person can feel that their sacrifice has been worth it. In other words, the challenge is to create a broad spectrum of participation in the economy by coming up with policies and initiatives that will stimulate growth and that will remove the obstacles that the ordinary person faces from day to day to transact business in Jamaica. The challenge is to create this participatory framework that can assist people in managing their expectations in a cogent and sensible way. This has been a glaring failure of a PNP Government which continues to believe that big projects will generate growth as benefits finally trickle down to those below.

It makes no sense to tell people that you feel their pain, and that in the long term large projects will begin to generate substantial economic gains from which everyone will benefit. People who are experiencing pain need relief now. Promises of relief are vain babblings. You will endure a toothache over the weekend until you can get to the dentist on Monday. When you turn up at his office you do not want to hear that he has gone off unexpectedly to a conference on the latest technology in dentistry. That technology may help you with a problem in the long run, but what you want right now is a relief from pain. Governments in Jamaica have not understood this. So while they trumpet better to come, the people know what they are feeling and the relief they seek. It might be this decisive factor of not attending to people’s existential pain in so many areas that causes the PNP to lose the next general election.

One of the ways in which people can be encouraged in the new year to participate in the emerging economy is through engagement with the presently booming stock market. Bloomberg’s eirenic assessment of the Jamaican stock market as the number one market for 2015 has come at a good time. It has reinforced the general upbeat trajectory that the economy is now experiencing.

Jarringly, it points to the sad lack of participation of many Jamaicans in the gains to be had there. It all comes down to education. I am not aware that the management of the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE), whose own listing on the market has been seeing phenomenal gains, has been conducting educational seminars throughout the length and breadth of Jamaica to sensitise people to investments they can make on the stock exchange.

Too many people labour under the false impression that the stock market is for the “big man”, or that it is too risky for poor people to lose their savings in it. Yes, there is risk investing in equities, but such risks can be managed. Indeed, life itself is a risk; even stashing your money away in a hole or under your mattress is a risk. There may be no more risk attached to keeping your money in a bank or credit union savings account than buying a stock on the stock market. And why put $5,000 on a bank savings account with the fees attached to earn a measly return when you could buy stocks in that bank, earn dividends on your stock, and increase your gains if the stock moves up. Even if it moves down, it will not affect your dividends since the dividend is based on the number of stocks you own. Do you see National Commercial Bank, Scotiabank, Sagicor, to name a few, not paying dividends? Do you see them going out of business any time soon?

If Cash Plus and the various Ponzi schemes that have disgraced the Jamaican landscape taught any lessons it must be that Jamaicans are not afraid to take risks. They only need information so that they can take reasonably managed risks.

The management of the stock exchange must become more robust in educating and encouraging the so-called “small man” to take a look at the market for 2016. In my years of dealing with the “small man” I have learnt that he is not as small as one may make him out to be. When I dabbled briefly in real estate development I was surprised — and at times shamed — at how easily a person you may have taken for granted could come up with a deposit to pay for a lot or down payment on a house. That was almost 30 years ago, and I am sure the situation has not changed. There is a tendency in this country to look down on people like that. This is why I say I was ashamed to assume a person’s financial ability instead of allowing it to emerge on its own merit. I have a strong respect for people like this. I am not sure that respect is shared by many in the society who tend to think that it is the “big man” who will take the risks.

I hope that stock brokerage houses and the JSE will engage these people throughout Jamaica through educational initiatives so that they too can make a decision to participate. Like the banks, they cannot expect people to come to them; they must hit the streets running and encourage a more vibrant and participatory model in the building of financial capital in Jamaica. Imagine the exponential effect on the economy as companies become more capitalised and do not have to rely slavishly on debt to expand and grow. I can understand the banks’ resistance to this notion, since they thrive on debt, but if we want to build a truly participatory economy, we must encourage a broader participation of Jamaicans in capital formation.

Dr Raulston Nembhard is a priest and social commentator. Send comments to the Observer orstead6655@aol.com.