Richard Doornbosch: Forging new opportunities with old friends
Opening and welcoming remarks by Mr Richard Doornbosch, President of the Centrale
Bank van Curaçao en Sint Maarten, at the Suriname Week 2023, Willemstad, 14
August 2023.
* * *
Excellencies, the minister of finance, minister Silvania, the Consule-General of the
Republic of Suriname, ms Zuiverloon, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, good
morning, Morgu, Moru bon dia, bon siman,
It is a great pleasure to welcome you here today and to talk about the potential of a new
frontier of opportunity that lies open before Curaçao and Suriname.
Forging new opportunities with old friends.
I would like to thank the organizers, Stijn Janssen and Sam Kruiner, for kindly inviting
me to provide the opening remarks for Suriname Week in Curaçao and for asking the
Centrale Bank van Curaçao en Sint Maarten to host the first day of the event.
The CBCS welcomes you all to the start of hopefully a promising few days of fruitful
exchange.
I believe it is appropriate to start here at the central bank. Not only the two countries
share deep historical ties and a great deal of shared cultural experiences - both good
and bad - this is also true for our central banks.
These ties go back not years, not decades but centuries.
On behalf of King Willem I of the Netherlands, Johannes van den Bosch established De
Curaçaosche Bank in 1828, precursor of the CBCS, and shortly thereafter the same
Johannes van den Bosch established the Particuliere West-Indische Bank, forerunner
of the Centrale Bank van Suriname, in Paramaribo in 1829.
Each institution shared many of the same principles at their inception. In fact Van den
Bosch initially conceived one bank based in Paramaribo to facilitate all financial and
commercial relations in this part of the Dutch Kingdom.
With the expectations that this would foster greater regional trade and commerce.
Similar to the objectives of this week.
At the time, the vast geographic distance and the distinct economic characteristics of
Suriname on the one hand, and of Curaçao on the other, proved too formidable for such
a role at the time for just one bank.
In the century that followed, many people from Suriname migrated to Curaçao in the
early days of the refinery looking for work, while still others came as teachers and
doctors. Many settled here, calling Curaçao home. Indeed, today their descendants
have played, and continue to play, vital roles in Curaçao society as well as in the wider
Dutch Caribbean.
If we fast forward to 2023, we know that things turned out differently then Johannes van
de Bosch or the negotiators of the Charter of 1954 aimed for.
In 1975 Suriname left the Kingdom, charting its own future, while the Netherlands
Antilles mutually dissolved itself into separate countries and territories in 2010, yet
remaining firmly within the legal and political orbit of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
In many ways, our collective history since 1954 has been marked more by formal
disintegration and separation than by ever deepening integration. The value of bilateral
trade with Suriname, for example, remains comparatively low when measured against
Curaçao's main trading partners, such as the United States and the Netherlands.
In the past decades Both Curacao and Suriname experienced turbulent times in its
national development. The economic and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela in recent
years have left deep scars on Curacao.
In Suriname, significant macroeconomic challenges continue to exist, such as a high
1
debt-to-GDP ratio, reaching approximately 120% in 2022 , combined with persistent,
high double-digit inflation averaging 23% per year for over 10 years. Fortunately, steps
are being taken today to redress these macroeconomic imbalances.
Both countries are considered small nations though Suriname covers a vast geographic
area and a population roughly four times that of Curacao.
The economic size is more similar. Suriname has a GDP of $5,5 mrd whereas
Curacaos GDP is around $3,2 mrd. In the past decade prosperity has been on a
declining trend in both countries.
Yet new opportunities have arisen. Curacao has great economic potential in the
services sector. Tourism, financial services and Information Technology. And in
sustainable energy production.
In Suriname the recent discovery of significant oil and natural gas reserves off the
Surinamese coast presents enormous opportunities to overcome some of the past
economic adversity. One only has to look at neighboring Guayana that has seen annual
growth rates of 20-50% in recent years.
However, the discovery of oil and natural gas is no guarantee for a sustainable and
inclusive economic growth path. Prudent investment of the capital flows needs to be
coupled with the realization of sound public financial management.
There are positive signs. For example the new mega deepwater facility in Nickerie,
being developed in Suriname, with amongst others the Port of Rotterdam.
The total expected investment cost is US$5.4 billion and will feature LNG facilities and a
special economic zone, among other things. An investment the size of the total GDP of
Suriname.
So, there is reason for optimism. Unlocking the potential depends critically on access to
affordable capital. This is a key challenge. And it is to Curaçao that Suriname can look
to as a reliable and familiar regional business partner to further develop the latent
opportunities locked within it as a gateway to capital.
What I see as one of Curaçao's selling points is its open economy with reliable,
modern, and capable IT infrastructure that is relatively close to Suriname, with frequent
direct flights.
Another important advantage of doing business here for investors is our incorporation
into a wider, robust, and credible judicial system within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
And it is out of our mutual past that Suriname, too, shares a similar legal system with
Curaçao. This potentially makes it easier to do business with each other because of
mutually intelligible civil law compared to other jurisdictions.
Over time, Curaçao has developed a sophisticated financial services sector, backed by
the rule of law and modern best practices.
Its financial institutions are staffed by qualified professionals that offer sophisticated
services in a range of financial products and in a range of languages, from traditional
commercial banking and trust services to the recent and gradual emergence of fintech
products.
Our financial services sector exists not only within a robust and impartial judicial system
acting as final arbitrator in the event of disputes, but it exists also within a monetary and
supervisory policy framework that complies with and is constantly changing with
international standards.
The policy framework fosters a stable macroeconomic environment as well as actively
promoting financial soundness, risk-mitigation, fairness to customers, and fighting
financial crimes.
Recently, minister Cijntje, of whom you will hear more after me, the Minister responsible
for Economic Development has launched the country's National Export Strategy, a
5year plan aimed at diversifying exports to drive economic development and increase
foreign exchange earnings for the country.
Of particular relevance for the CBCS and for today's discussion is the National Export
Strategy's third strategic objective for the international financial services sector, which
aims to "stimulate new opportunities for the sector" by "extending regional integration
and increasing business matching support."
Curaçao, consequently, remains an ideal place for Surinamese entrepreneurs and
investors to springboard their international business and financing aims and ventures
because of our financial sector's inherent strengths and advantages.
This could likely start with Curaçao functioning as a financial hub for existing
Surinamese financial firms to conduct international transactions through Curaçao's
international banking networks and its credible payment services platforms, possible in
the future including virtual asset service providers and other emerging Fintech while
safeguarding financial integrity.
In addition, Curaçao may serve as a financial gateway for Surinamese firms to raise
significant investment capital beyond their domestic commercial banks, if the need
arises. A prime, recent example is the bond program of the Staatsolie Maatschappij
Suriname N.V.
Bonds issued by Staatsolie were successfully listed on the Dutch Caribbean Securities
Exchange in 2020. The program eventually secured US$ 195 million in international
bonds to fund its investment program 2020 - 2027, portions of which were raised here
in the domestic capital market.
This also opens the door for the possibility of alternative forms of financing, such as
participating in risk capital or equity financing by Curaçao-based firms.
I am confident you will hear much more about these opportunities in the coming days
from the real experts. So let me conclude.
Today, the formidable obstacles, such as slow communications and vast geographic
distance, that Van Den Bosch faced when he established the first currency issuing
banks in the Western Hemisphere have vanished in the internet age.
There are no significant barriers between Curaçao and Suriname except perhaps our
own inability to see the economic potential that lies before us. It is simply up to us as
old friends to forge those new opportunities with the new means and old familiar social
bonds that already exist.
Curaçao is interesting for Surinamese business as a secure and safe harbor for
entrepreneurs wishing to embark on new initiatives with a global clientele.
Curaçao's excellent financial infrastructure has much to offer in order to grow business
in a secure manner, and to conduct international business through trusted
intermediaries with decades of experience. In doing so, we further develop our societies
mutually.
I would like to close by paraphrasing the great poet and Caribbean Nobel Laureate,
Derek Walcott, "the care it takes to reassemble the fragments of a broken vase is
stronger than the care that took the vase for granted for so long."
Perhaps now we should all take greater care in reassembling the broken fragments of
our collective past for a stronger economic future.
Thank you for your attention, and I wish you much success in the coming days.
1
Source: IMF Country Report No.2023/2023 on Suriname.