Statia & Saba
From a different perspective

Trade winds bring the first Spanish ships to the Caribbean around 1500. Soon, the battle fields between the British, French, Dutch and Spanish shift from Europe to the "West Indies" with gold, silver, tobacco, sugar, cocoa and salt at stake.

For more than two centuries, the Dutch trade and smuggle as "merchant and pastor" at the same time

Five centuries later we still face the same attitude: apart from trade winds, headwinds are blowing, significantly slowing down our pace. 

“Small Island Developing States” have identical economic problems, but The Hague's inability -or unwillingness- to act make effective solutions impossible. 

Trade then and now

• Sint Maarten, Statia and Saba are the first islands to which the trade winds blow Columbus. He gives the islands their names, but doesn't even bother to go ashore. 

• This is understandable: after all, these are dwarf states, even today:

• Until 1600, the Spaniards engage in gold, tobacco, sugar and cotton on a small scale.

• Only when the WIC - West Indian Company - takes an interest in the islands, serious economic activity starts, though not always in a positive sense. 

• In the next three centuries, the islands frequently change hands - Statia no less than 21 times - depending on the outcome of wars in Europe.

Saint Martin

• Around 1600, the WIC set its sights on Sint Maarten as a warehouse for trade between the Dutch colonies of Brazil and New Amsterdam (Manhattan). That fills WIC's coffers. 

• In 1817, France and the Netherlands - tired of wars - divide Sint Maarten; nevertheless, the economy is going downhill.

• But in 1939, Sint Maarten gets a boost when it becomes a duty-free port. After the war, cruise ships include the island in their itineraries.

• When Castro wreaks havoc in Cuba in the 1960s, all casinos and nightclubs move from "the brothel of the USA" to Sint Maarten. 

• The island becomes the new refuge for American and Dutch politicians and well-known artists: pirate nest new style.

Statia

• It is the smaller Statia that sets the tone in the 17th century, although not always in a positive sense.

• The WIC rents the island to a group of Zeeland merchants, who call it "New Zealand".

• In no time Statia becomes the World Trade Center of the Western Hemisphere:

• Tobacco, sugar and cocoa from neighboring islands to Flushing, Netherlands

• Enslaved people from Africa for the French and English

• Weapons and supplies for the American rebels

• Indigo from Honduras and Saba

• Pork from Mexico

• Permits to fly a peace flag to privateers.

• Flour imported from America into St. Kitts, smuggled to Statia at night.

• The warehouses in Oranjestad are full and at times more than 200 ships are moored at the same time at the roadstead, which is more than 1.5 km long. Occasionally, the cargo is sold with the ship, because there are not enough porters for the transshipment.

• Trade on this non-producing island amounts to millions of dollars and soon the island gets the name "Golden Rock".

• But in spite of this, the WIC goes bankrupt because profits go to the Amsterdam and Zeeland merchants.

Political blunder

• The Dutch don't endear themselves to their competitors. During the American Revolution, about half of all goods for the American rebels are traded through Statia, much to the anger of the British.

• When the American ship Andrew Doria enters the harbor to buy ammunition and provisions, it is greeted with a "First Salute"  from Fort Oranje. Statia thus becomes the first country to recognize the USA.

• The British swear vengeance and destroy the "nest of vipers, which prey on the vital parts of Great-Britain".

• Statia will not recover from this blow; ruins of warehouses are the only witnesses of former glory.

• In 1982, Gulf Oil builds a deep-sea bunker terminal on Statia, which may not create income, but at least creates employment. 

• From a tourist point of view, the island is of no significance. It has no white beaches and marginal infrastructure; cruise ships on Sint Maarten only stay there for a few hours, too short for a trip to Statia.

Saba

• With its 887 meter high volcano, Saba is the highest point of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and at the same time the smallest area with permanent population in the Americas.

• In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Saba population cultivates sugar, indigo and rum from plantations owned by Dutch merchants on Statia. Later, lobster fishing becomes an important source of income.

• Since Saba husbands are often away from home - either as pirates or as fishermen - the island gets its nickname "The Island of Women". But these women are not wasting their time: they make socks, belts, gloves, straw hats and Saba lace that will become famous worldwide. The latter generates considerable export income in the 19th and 20th centuries.

• The women learn the craft of the special lace from a Venezuelan nun. For centuries, Venezuela has claimed Saba as Venezuelan territory since it is connected to Isla de Aves, Venezuela's northernmost island in the Caribbean, via sandbanks. 

• In 2004, after a long tug-of-war between Venezuela and the Netherlands, the population chooses to be part of the Netherlands.

Our experiences

• It is clear that this is not a normal project: we have no track record in the area, no network, no specific knowledge of  Small Island Development States, just our experience of trading under difficult conditions.

Regional trade

• So one does what anyone with common sense would do: put all heads that matter together. 

• From both islands we bring chambers of commerce, business associations, hospitality sector and other entrepreneurs together with government for brainstorming. 

• It results in a long list of wishes, ideas and previous projects, with following examples:

Business cases

• We screen the list and delete projects of which we have no particular knowledge or which exceed our scope, such as geothermal energy on Saba. 

• We keep the high-speed ferry between the islands, because good accessibility of Statia and Saba is a must for almost all other projects.

• Together with local entrepreneurs and officials, we make business cases for four projects, including the ferry. 

• The subsidy application of € 250.000, submitted by Saba and Statia, is being honored in The Hague. Our sector experts can get to work.

• For the export of agricultural products, this means trade development or "make what sells", before one can "sell what is made". 

• This is necessary, since Dutch "municipalities" are not part of the EU, but France's "outermost regions" in the Caribbean are, so EU non-tariff barriers apply*. These are the main markets for Saba's quail and lobster. 

*The EU is known in the rest of the world as "Fortress Europe" because of its endless regulations, which non-Europeans believe are solely intended to protect its own industry

High-speed ferry

• For the ferry project we need to get everyone in The Hague in line. Sadly enough, the headwinds, of which I spoke of earlier, now start blowing from all directions:

  • The Justice Ministry has strong reservations in view of immigration issues

  • The Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management disqualifies the ports of Saba and Statia

  • The Finance Ministry has objections to setting up a completely new customs infrastructure

• This is the start of endless meetings in The Hague, which goes beyond our scope of activity. In spite of this, we keep pushing, approaching investors even as far as New Zealand*, so as to take the projects to a next level.

*New Zealand has know-how in identical marine conditions

• We can't get it done within the time available: we submit the business cases to all parties in the islands and in The Hague, including results achieved so far. The Ministry of the Interior promises to include four projects in the annual budget.

High-speed adventure

• One experience was very special: on social media, we've all seen the 747s landing over the heads of tourists on Sint Maarten. But that is nothing compared to a start on Saba. 

• The shortest commercial runway in the world ending over a ravine and rough ocean full of sharks beats everything, even the "most dangerous airports in the world" such as Lukla, Tegucigalpa or Courchevel

Eight years later . . . . 

• In 2020, the Hartman* committee concludes that there should be a "public transport air connection" through a PSO, but the Minister ignores this advice.

• Once again, government and business are working at two different speeds: it will take until 2021 before Statia Government announces the launch of a ferry with substantial subsidy from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management.

*Former CEO of KLM

• The ferry is operational -Makana ferry-, albeit with  lower frequency, but larger capacity. The other projects can start. 

• In 2023, we contact Koos Sneek, former municipal councilor at Statia and our liaison at the time. He belongs to the group of people who see more in subsidies for flight routes:

"There is now a subsidized ferry service between , Sint Maarten, Statia, Saba and St. Kitts. Pilot for 2 years. This service makes travel affordable for the local population, especially to St. Maarten, but does not contribute to the economy of our island. It hardly brings tourists, but it has meant that there are far fewer flights to Statia and the price for a return ticket to St. Maarten is $ 250 or more."

• In 2023, an article on the ferry connection appears in NRC, a national newspaper in the Netherlands, :

"The ferry, which has been sailing between Sint Maarten, Saba and Statia for two years, is a success. The number of passengers has almost doubled this year. The subsidy will be extended for two years."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . 

"With an increased subsidy, the ticket price could be reduced to $40 for a return ticket to Sint Maarten. That will not happen for the time being: the cabinet has postponed the decision." [!]

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

"The Ministry calculated in May that residents of Saba and Statia pay four times as much as users of European PSO routes"

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

"The Ministry expects 34,000 passengers for 2023; Makana [the ferry service] has a different number: 47,000, 80 percent more than last year"

One thing is for sure . . . .