Microsoft Word - ECCU Creative Youth Competition Essay KAH
product, which represented 14% of its total GDP ("Tourism in the Caribbean", 2018). The
Caribbean is also known for having some of the highest crime and murder rates in the world,
with Kingston, Jamaica at a homicide rate of 59.71 per 100,000 people being amongst the top
20 highest murder rates in the world ("List of cities by murder rate", 2019). Something must be
done about these crimes, or tourism and related revenue may very well be redirected to countries
deemed safer for tourists to be. Even native residents, fearing for their safety may choose to
migrate out of the Caribbean seeking work in a safer environment, causing massive brain-drain
on the region (Jessop, 2014). The removal of cash may lead to a decrease in blue-collar crimes,
as-well as financial crimes, because it will be harder to hide income and evade taxes when every
transaction is recorded.
Apart from the reduction of crimes, a cashless society can bring improvement in various
parts of society. Consumers are looking for convenience, governments are looking for
efficiency, and businesses are looking for profits (Wright, 2016). Instead of shopping in physical
stores with cash, online shopping can be done from the comfort of your home using digital
means avoiding all lines, potential unpleasant encounters with employees etc. Even if one prefers
to shop at a physical store, the use of self-checkout lanes which accept credit and debit card can
be done to get through quickly and reduce human error. Businesses also usually spend additional
money, hiring security services to protect said cash. Operating costs of a business can be
significantly reduced, by cutting employees such as cashiers or security needed for these tasks.
Many forms of digital trading are available, with cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin being a more
recent form of a completely digital currency that is traded online and can be used to purchase
goods and services in the real world.
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