Reflections on Grenada

Keep your eyes open over the next few years and you’ll start to see Grenada in the press more often. For an island that is only 21 miles long and slowly being eroded by the Atlantic Ocean, it is a land on the rise. While the events of the last 25 years have shocked and changed the island, the next 25 will shock and change the outside worlds’ impression of the nation.

Whether it was invasion of 1983, Hurricane Ivan in 2004, or Hurricane Emily in 2005, the Grenadians learned that they had to change and improve their island if they wanted to survive. Considering a great deal of their income derives through tourism, this was ever more of an issue than in other nations that have also had to transition and accept change.

Just outside of the capital, St. George’s, is a multi-million dollar project aimed at expanding the natural marina and allowing for hundreds of 40-foot boats and yachts to be able to drop anchor in Grenada. Though the island suffered from two hurricanes in the last decade, it generally is spared by hurricanes because of how far south it is. Because of this, many boat owners keep their ships in the marina during hurricane season.

These improvements to the marina will allow for millions of dollars in revenue to circulate throughout the island, improving, among other things, agriculture and education. While some have speculated that all of the improvements to the tourism industry by outside investors will cause the locals to fall into a trap of service industry workers, the British investors insist that they’re intentions are to improve the conditions and then hand over the operations to Grenadians. They’ve even helped start a Hotel and Tourism Management major at the university so that the locals can educate themselves and work in upper management roles.

It’s clear that tourism is what drives the economic success of the island, and though the charm of Grenada is its innocence and lack of crowds, bustle, and congestion, the secret will invariably always get out. The Grenadians are wonderful people, and like any other nationals, they want to see their home prosper and draw visitors. The resilience of the Grenadians is amazing, and they will continue to work on and improve their homeland for years to come.

For information on Grenada, visit
www.grenadagrenadines.com