Creativity
Caribbean bowled over by ball game
Such is the zeal with which cricket is enjoyed that all else virtually came to a standstill in March and April with the hosting of the 2007 International Cricket Council World Cup in the Caribbean.
West Indies cricket captain, Brian Lara, at the crease during the Cricket World Cup.
Photo Philip Spooner.
The event had been months in planning by governments, businesses, media and many others across the Caribbean’s nine host nations. Its legacy goes beyond the boundary of the few weeks of wickets taken and runs scored. Say the word cricket and some immediately think of a small, chirpy and annoying insect. Not so in the Caribbean. In this part of the world, the first thing that comes to mind is a passionate ball sport bordering on religion.
Just as the Caribbean is known globally for its breathtaking tropical assets – stunning sunsets, turquoise seas and sandy beaches – West Indians are regarded around the world as some of the best players of the game.
Historically, cricket is an enduring colonial legacy, passed on from Britain to her former colonies, and is widely played in the Caribbean, parts of Africa, Europe, Asia, Australasia and South America.
Caribbean islands such as Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and Antigua hold a fanatical enthusiasm for cricket. This love for the sport was the greatest driver that brought together several independent islands in the 15-member Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in a manner unseen before, rising to new levels of cooperation to stage the ninth edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup, www.cricketworldcup.com.
From March 5, preliminary and semifinal round matches were played in St. Vincent, Antigua, Barbados, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago, with the grand final staged in the newly re-developed Kensington Oval in Barbados on April 28.
Regional Cooperation
Leading up to and during the tournament, high levels of cooperation, which had been lacking in several areas in the Caribbean, was evident in new partnerships and alliances, particularly at governmental and private sector levels. Apart from regional governments pooling US$10 million in resources to create a new regional security framework, Caribbean territories also effected a single domestic space, issued a common CARICOM visa, www.caricom.org, successfully executed major construction projects and came together at the business level to provide a range of services for the global event.
In Parliaments, common pieces of ‘sunset’ legislation were passed across the region to facilitate the staging of the World Cup. All laws specially formulated under the World Cup cricket legislation were to expire on May 15. Underpinning the notion of a single domestic space was collaboration among police, customs and immigration authorities for the free movement of teams, officials, sponsors, media and fans attending World Cup events. This networking among authorities, with assistance from Britain and the USA, fell within the new security framework for the region and some territories, including St. Lucia and Trinidad, for the first time moved to implement technology for machine-readable passports. Under the visa programme implemented by Caribbean governments, nationals and residents of several countries did not require visas to travel within the single domestic space.
In preparing to host cricket’s global showpiece tournament, Caribbean governments outlaid millions of dollars to construct new stadia, enhance venues and improve infrastructure in several islands. Some funding also came from Asian governments, through development assistance. Taiwan contributed US$6 million to develop the New Warner Park in St Kitts while the new 11,000-seater Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua, named after a former West Indies captain, was built with the aid of a US$10 million grant from the People's Republic of China. The Indian government contributed US$20 million to the new 17,000-seater Providence stadium in Guyana which also includes housing facilities in the environs of the stadium.
In Barbados, the Government committed over Bds$135 million for a number of projects and the redevelopment of Kensington Oval, a venue with a rich heritage. Like in other islands, preparations for the World Cup in Barbados accelerated the delivery of services to nationals as well as improved infrastructure such as airports and highways.
Catalyst for growth
“We wish to use the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 as a catalyst for significant and measurable service, tourism, infrastructural, and economic development in Barbados”, the Barbados Local Organising Committee said in the tendering process. Vancourt Rouse, the Chief of Operations with the Barbados LOC, said while benefits were already being seen there was much more to come as Barbados intended to use the event to focus on business development, community tourism, national sports strategy, cricket development, and cultural industries development.
For the 60-day period from March to April 2007, Barbados came alive with craft, music, visual and performing arts, culinary arts, community sports, tourism attractions, and vending of all types, with major emphasis on showcasing Barbados and maximising visitor spending. Rouse said that in deciding Barbados’ strategy during the bid phase, an Economic Impact Assessment study was done which showed that financial benefits from ticket revenues and visitor spending during the event would amount to Bds$250 million. The benefits that will accrue in the 10 years after 2007 could exceed Bds$750 million if there were a 5% increase in tourism receipts during that period.
While most politicians and interest groups were supportive of efforts to host a successful World Cup in the Caribbean, some warned of discrimination against nationals and marginalisation of small business people. In Jamaica, executives of the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC), (www.fantasyisle.com), predicted that the economic benefits promised from the events by the government would elude the nation. Past President, Michael Ammar, projected a US$90 million (JAM$6 billion) debt and said Government was only likely to recoup US$10 million of revenues from the US$100 million (JAM$6.7 billion) it invested in the event.
Ammar’s concerns in some way were reflected earlier by Finance Minister Dr Omar Davies who said last year that Jamaica was unlikely to see any financial gains on its CWC investment. The JCC further accused government of not being forthright with details of the plans for CWC 2007, including details on how the financing of the JAM$6.7 billion investment would be structured. Said Ammar: “It is going to be a legacy of debt”.
* Bernard Babb is a Barbados-based journalist
1 $Bds = 0.38 €
1 $US = 0.76 €
1 $JAM = 0.011 €
