Social security in the english-speaking Caribbean

This document was prepared by Oliver Paddison, Associate Economic Affairs Officer in the Economic Development Unit of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean. Prepared as a support to the document Shaping the Future of Social Protection: Access, Financing and Solidarity" presented in the XXXI ECLAC Session Period carried out in Montevideo, Uruguay during March, 20 to 24, 2006. The views expressed in this document, which has been reproduced without formal editing, are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Organization. Abstract Over the last years issues concerning social security have become important items on the economic and political agenda, in particular as demographic projections threaten the financial sustainability of many social security schemes that are currently in place. Whilst the Caribbean has not been insulated from these developments, substantive reform of social security has yet to materialize in the region. One reason may be the fact that research on social security in the Caribbean is rather limited, providing decision makers with few answers on how to tackle the issue of reform in the region. This paper highlights the current status of social security in the region. By presenting indicators of recent performance and in particular by identifying challenges that schemes in the region face, the study aims to contribute to the discussion by providing relevant facts and suggesting ways forward."