Preliminary overview of the economies of the Caribbean 2020–2021

This overview examines the economic performance of economies of the Caribbean in 2020 and comprises four chapters. The first chapter provides a comparative analysis across Caribbean economies of the main macroeconomic variables, namely GDP growth, monetary indicators, as well as fiscal and external accounts. The second chapter looks at areas of focus in the Caribbean. The third chapter concludes, while the annex includes individual country briefs that give an overview of the economic situation for the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname and a subregional assessment of the coun…

The Hummingbird Vol. 9 No. 5

The Hummingbird Vol. 9 No. 4

A review of the status of institutional mechanisms for sustainable development planning in the Caribbean

The 2030 Agenda underscores the importance of a strengthened institutional framework at the national and regional levels that integrates the three dimensions of sustainable development. This study provides an overview of integrated decision-making processes in Caribbean countries and the role that national institutions play in supporting systematizing integrated decision-making for sustainable development, including in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with focus on eight Caribbean Small Island Developing States (SIDS): Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin Isl…

The Hummingbird Vol. 9 No. 3

The Caribbean is Making Strides on the SDGS

Economic Survey of the Caribbean 2021

This survey examines the economic performance of economies of the Caribbean in 2020 and the first few months of 2021 and comprises five chapters. The first chapter gives an overview of global, regional and subregional economic performance in the Caribbean. The second provides an analysis of the subregion’s fiscal performance and debt burden. The third looks at monetary policy and their impacts. The fourth is focused on the external sector, while the fifth concludes.…

Selected online learning experiences in the Caribbean during COVID-19

This study examines how ICTs have supported equitable development of online distance learning for students in primary, secondary, and tertiary education systems across the Caribbean. By presenting data obtained through interviews with government officials and other key stakeholders in five countries and territories - Barbados, the British Virgin Islands, Guyana, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago – the study highlights learning continuity challenges and successful adaptations specific to the subregion during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study identifies best practices and recommendations to integr…

Education during the COVID-19 pandemic: Access, inclusion and psychosocial support

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development recognises the key role that education plays in empowering people with the knowledge and skills to work together towards sustainable economic and social development, the highest attainable standards of health and well-being, equality, human rights and global peace. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 is dedicated to the achievement of quality education, aiming to ensure inclusive and equitable education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all. COVID-19, however, threatens to reverse the progress made so far on SDG4 and other SDGs and r…

Proposal to establish a Caribbean Resilience Fund: A segregated portfolio trust fund

Caribbean economies have been grappling with high debt, low growth and structural challenges which have been exacerbated since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is, therefore, an urgent need to reduce debt and promote resilience building for these economies. The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) has proposed the establishment of the Caribbean Resilience Fund (CRF) as a mechanism to contribute to the achievement of these critical development goals. The CRF is a special purpose financing vehicle intended to leverage long-term low-cost development financing f…

Synthesis of policy interventions responding to integrated water resources management challenges in the Caribbean SIDS

In the Caribbean, high water demand, changes in land use, climate variabilities impacts, deforestation, soil erosion, pollution, inadequate wastewater treatment, and the overexploitation of water sources1, impact on the quantity and quality of available freshwater resources. The management of freshwater resources through an integrated approach is internationally recognised as a best practice for supporting the sustainability of this finite resource. The recent United Nations - 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development report noted the low to medium-low levels of implementation of the integrated …

The Hummingbird Vol. 9 No. 2

The Hummingbird Vol. 9 No. 1

Essential elements of the ECLAC Caribbean Resilience Fund : a segregated portfolio trust fund. Policy Brief

Declining economic growth and competitiveness, the impact of the 2007–2009 global financial crisis, and the challenge of climate change and extreme weather events have hindered the sustainable development of Caribbean economies, the generation of sustained welfare gains and the achievement of key Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the subregion’s vulnerability to the vagaries of global aggregate demand and commodity prices, which have largely driven the subregion’s debt upwards and dampened economic growth before its onset, compromising its ec…

Conceptualizing a circular economy in the Caribbean: perspectives and possibilities. Policy Brief

Although the notion of a circular economy (CE) has been conceived and debated for more than half a century (Henrysson and Nuur, 2021), it has gained considerable popularity in the lexicon of economists, ecologists and other development thinkers over the past two decades. The increasing evidence of the existential threat of human-induced climate change and the related imperatives of decarbonizing the global economy, have led to greater focus on strategies for a more sustainable use of the natural and environmental resource base.…

The Hummingbird Vol. 8 No. 12

The Hummingbird Vol. 8 No. 11

The Hummingbird Vol. 8 No. 10

The Hummingbird Vol. 8 No. 9

Strategies for Post COVID-19 Recovery in the Caribbean