Confirmation that the coronavirus-related support package for Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba (so-called BES islands) ends per October 1 (see related story) must feel like a cold shower to businesses concerned relying on such to stay open as well as employees whose job and/or income might soon be at risk. It regards subsidies for both wages and fixed cost.
After all, the COVID-19 situations there are still vulnerable at best and their dominant hospitality industries have only recently started rebounding. This deadline expires a month from now, and the question could justifiably be asked whether that is enough to get back to even near pre-pandemic levels.
Thankfully, the transition will be smoothened with temporary means for supplemental island-specific policy via the free allowance, to be increased – compared with the current third quarter – for the final three months of 2021. The latter is important also because the traditional high season does not begin until mid-December.
However, the extent to which this would allow local governments to help individual entrepreneurs and their personnel plus others now depending on financial assistance remains unclear. One may safely assume that hard times are once again ahead for many.
This news should serve as wakeup call for St. Maarten, Aruba and Curaçao too, where a similar development is likely. That makes quickly bringing infection numbers down and visitor arrivals up crucial, so that their tourism economies can – at least to a large degree – recover before then.
