wn this year as the sovereign debt crisis in Europe continues to unfold.”

The report points to the European sovereign debt crisis that erupted in Greece last May as a major shock to the global economy, whose multiple negative effects will continue to reverberate around the world. “Failure of policymakers, especially those in Europe and the United States, to address the jobs crisis and prevent sovereign debt distress and financial sector fragility from escalating poses the most acute risk for the global economy in the outlook for 2012-2013,” the report states.

The report also notes that the South Asian and Latin American and Caribbean regions remain particularly susceptible to the future of developed economies as both the EU and the US are key export markets as well as sources of tourism revenue.

Here in the Cayman Islands, even without the benefit of such a report, those of us who pay attention to the geo-political and economic environment around us, were already well aware that this year and beyond would continue to be challenging.

Unemployment is one of the most persistent problems in most countries, whose economies have been rocked by financial meltdown and governments are being cautioned to address high unemployment, particularly among youth, as a matter of urgency.

Here are home, the figure of 2,000 unemployed has been bandied about, and if accurate, is certainly cause for concern, and for serious action.

In his New Year’s address to the country Premier McKeeva Bush cited key imperatives for 2012 as “a growing economy; stronger infrastructure; stable financials for government… and for individuals.

The Premier is pinning much hope on the ForCayman Investment Alliance project, to generate employment and pump well-needed investment dollars into the economy.

We now know that with the signing in December of the agreement through the Cabinet Office and the National Roads Authority and Dart Realty for the development projects under the ForCayman Investment Alliance, preparatory work in already taking place for the road-building element of the project. Heavy equipment operators, contractors and many small businesses are no doubt waiting in the wings for when this projects comes fully on stream, to relieve the lack of employment and economic activity that have plagued the country over the past three years.

Despite the mistrust, protests and opposition that have surrounded the ForCayman Investment Alliance project, somewhere there must be the hope that this will translate into much needed economic boost for the country and that the people who need it most will reap the benefits.

Based on his New Year’s message, the Premier is also reposing a lot of faith in several other large-scale projects that have been touted for the past two years. Chief among them is medical tourism, and specifically the Narayana Cayman University Medical Centre, which is expected to get underway by mid-year. Again, as a major project long-term project with a expected 2,000 bed capacity, this is expected to boost employment, provide significant investment in the economy and ultimately revenue for government.

We can also cite Cayman Enterprise City, another of the projects on which the Premier is pinning hopes for a more robust economy. Having passed the Special Economics Zone Law and with the establishment of the Special Economic Zone Authority, the expectation is there that Cayman Enterprise City will get going fully and that the 11 Caymanians that are said to be employed so far will turn into many multiples of that number.

The UN report recommends optimal design of fiscal policies to stimulate more direct job creation and investment, in order for countries to avoid a double-dip recession, and in our case, to avoid the aftershocks of the economic tremors in our large economic neighbour, the United States.

It appears that the Premier and his government are trying to heed this advice and are focusing on investment and job creation, through the projects he is supporting. We can only hope that the Premier’s optimism in these projects is well-founded and that the promise they hold for investment, employment and long-term development will indeed come to pass and will redound to the benefit of all who call the Cayman Islands home.

We do not believe that anyone wants a continuation of the tough times that we have all had to face in the recent past; and so perhaps it’s time for our own investment in collective optimism, and where we can, support for the well-meaning policies and programmes that will move us forward.