Dear Sir,

Here is an e-mail sent in response to a young man’s Facebook question to me: “Do you think that blacks can take over businesses again like construction, which were once black-dominated, and how?”

I have to remain an optimist, so my answer is yes I believe the black community could regain its former prominence or at least once again be part of the real competition in the building field.

We have lost too much ground for such an idea to happen quickly because it involves educating and engaging societal issues as well.

The industry relies on a couple of pillars:

1, An able body of tradesmen and technicians

I am working with the Bermuda Technical Institute alumni and on their select committee, whose role is to make the recommendations to inject technical education back into the schools and to help industry to re-establish apprenticeships.

Bermuda has become reliant on foreign technicians because we destroyed our own structure that produced tradesmen up until the mid-Seventies, and have been going downhill ever since. We have to rebuild the education to have a sustainable future.

2, The opportunity to engage in major building projects

Real knowledge and learning, even for any company’s growth, comes from experience. Without the opportunity there can be no experience.

We have to create the opportunity through:

a, The Government awarding and even supervising projects for the advancement of the beleaguered black contractors

b, Allowing private-sector black developers to launch major projects such as the condemned “waterfront development”. However, as long as this government follows the doctrine of the Minister of Economic Development, this will not happen

In essence, it is a combination of development of tradesmen, technical education, opportunity and patience.

KHALID WASI