Barely a mega farm,Tobago

THE EDITOR: May I respectfully suggest that the authorities for the planning and presentation of the THA (Tobago House of Assembly) budget 23/24 refrain from use of the captioned terminology whenever and wherever presentations are being made on behalf of the assembly?

This observation is in no way facetious but rather is based on a need for fundamental understanding of the development process in emerging economies and small-island states in particular.

Hypothetically, Tobago's entire land mass if developed as a single farm may barely qualify as a "mega farm." It is therefore extremely important for all concerned to appreciate the use of this term in relationship to scale.

Some may suggest that this amounts to nit-picking. On the contrary, only when there is clarity between "growth" and "development" would execution and implementation of the project have a reasonable probability of attaining the desirable outcome.

Accordingly, by correctly identifying the operational scale of the intended project, associated decisions are more likely to have positive outcomes. Herein lies the fundamental reason for my intervention.

SAMUEL B HOWARD

via e-mail