NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The recent announcement regarding the restart of the PetroCaribe Program could have positive implications for The Bahamas and wider region in securing easier access to oil through liberal credit arrangements, a governance reformer said yesterday.
Accountant Hubert Edwards, head of the Organization for Responsible Governance’s (ORG) economic development committee cautioned however that there must be “great care and deliberate usage” of this facility so as not to exacerbate current debt circumstances faced by many countries.
“In other words, despite easier access countries should be disciplined in their purchases,” said Edwards.
Prime Minister Philip Davis told said last month that lifting the US embargo on Venezuela — once the wealthiest country in South America — could be the key to ensuring lower fuel prices for Bahamian consumers. Davis said that small island developing states like The Bahamas have agitated for the lifting of US sanctions on Venezuela.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the price of oil and other commodities has risen exponentially. Venezuela is to begin supplying several CARICOM countries with oil as regional heads have agreed to resume the PetroCaribe agreement. PetroCaribe is an oil alliance introduced by the late Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez in 2005, which allowed governments to pay for petroleum over time.
