Caribbean tourism, trends, policies and impact, 1985-2002

This paper provides an overview of the structure and performance of the Caribbean tourism sector. It evaluates the role of policies and strategies as they impact the growth and competitiveness of the sector. Although the paper is not definitive on the subject, it provides some initial work on aspects of the industry that are not the typical focus of research. These include industrial structure, evaluated in terms of size, concentration, economies of scale and scope, competition and market types, for example oligopoly. Further the paper, examines the concept of clusters as it applies to the in…

Building an information society: a Latin American and Caribbean perspective

Abstract New technological options that permit the use of digital systems to create and disseminate information around the world are paving the way for new means of organizing society and economic production and are gradually giving rise to a meta-paradigm that has come to be referred to as the Information Society. Viewed from the perspective of developing countries, the question of how to employ this emerging paradigm to achieve broader development goals and to integrate them more fully into the global Information Society is an issue of the utmost importance on the development agenda…

Progress made in the implementation of the CARICOM single market and economy

This paper examines the progress in the implementation of the CSME and what this has meant for the core (trade, investment, etc.); and functional aspects (foreign policy coordination, education, health and social development, etc.,); of integration. A tentative assessment is also made of the relevance of the current mode of integration in light of the opportunities and constraints of the international environment. The paper is divided into three sections. Section one provides a critical assessment of the implementation of the protocols and other aspects of the CSME. Section two evaluates the …

Fiscal policy and social protection in Chile

Stable development and financing of the social protection system, one of the priorities of fiscal policy in Chile over recent years, has helped to reduce poverty and indigence, particularly since the 1990s. The fiscal accounts have been managed prudently, and budgetary balance and efficient administration have been given priority over short-term objectives. Even so, poverty is still a fact of life and the poor are still vulnerable to drastic falls in income. This means that an effort is still required to modernize fiscal policy and develop new institutional arrangements for the social protecti…

Financial crisis and national policy issues: an overview

Abstract In this overview we analyse, first, why funds continued to flow towards emerging economies, while fundamentals in host countries had been deteriorating before the Asian crisis (a rising external deficit, with a significant liquid component; appreciating exchange rates; low capital formation, particularly in Latin America), and why funding remains dry for long since 1998; the role of the nature of the predominant agents and of a process of flows rather than one-shot building of stock of foreign capital are stressed. Then, the analysis focuses on the interrelations of capital flows and …

From hard-peg to hard landing?: recent experiences of Argentina and Ecuador

Abstract Based on the analysis of the Argentinean currency board and the full dollarization scheme in Ecuador this paper argues that an intermediate exchange rate regime (compared to free floating or hard peg) will be a better option for countries subject to external financial shocks and a worldwide export and import structure. It shows that the Argentine convertibility system was successful as an anti-inflationary program. However, the reduction in the inflation rate has been accompanied by a dramatic change in relative prices of tradable and non tradable goods and services, which ha…

Governance crisis and the Andean region: a political economy analysis

The Andean countries, a region with abundance of natural resources and other valuable assets, exhibit a variety of governance problems that hinder its potential for social peace, stability and economic prosperity. Their empirical governance record, based on historical and recent data, although varies from country to country has been characterized by political instability, considerable frequency of constitutional reforms, presidential crisis, volatility of democratic institutions and violence. In turn, the empirical evidence on quality of institutions put the Andean region in a relatively modes…

Export promotion policies in CARICOM Caribbean economies

Discusses the objectives behind export promotional policies, their methods, and the benefits to be derived. Describes, analyses and assesses export promotional polices in the case of CARICOM Caribbean economies. Examines the physical and institutional context, and instruments for export promotional policies, and the analyses their implications and impact.…

Selected statistical indicators of Caribbean countries, vol. XVI, 2003

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean and Secretariat to the Caribbean Development and Cooperation Committee (CDCC), is pleased to present the seventeenth volume of the Selected Statistical Indicators of Caribbean Countries (SSI). This publication represents a compilation of original nationally produced and officially published statistics on select indicators for the year 2003. Where available, 2004 and 2005 figures have been included. The aim of the SSI is to serve as a single source of Caribbean statistics on national…

The development of services in the Caribbean

The services sector has grown significantly in most countries and in the world economy as a whole. This has been observed in the progression from primary to secondary and/or tertiary sector-led economic growth and development. Services contribute significantly to output, employment and exports. They account for about 80% of the United States output (GDP) and about 65% of GDP of the European Union. Developed countries are the largest service exporters accounting for over 70% of services traded in the late 1990s. Although developing countries account for a relatively smal…

Anuario Estadístico de América Latina y el Caribe 2002 = Statistical Yearbook for Latin America and the Caribbean 2002

La edición 2002 del Anuario estadístico de América Latina y el Caribe contiene una selección actualizada a comienzos de diciembre de las principales series estadísticas disponibles sobre la evolución económica y social de los países de la región. Representa un sistemático esfuerzo de la División de Estadística y Proyecciones de la CEPAL, orientado a homogeneizar las cifras y a hacerlas internacionalmente comparables. La primera parte comprende indicadores socioeconómicos derivados (tasas de crecimiento, proporciones o coeficientes), que representan una visión resumida de cada área de interés y…

Returning to an external debate: the terms of trade for commodities in the twentieth century

Abstract This paper looks at the evolution of the terms of trade between commodities and manufactures in the twentieth century. A statistical analysis of the relative price series for 24 commodities and of eight indices reveals a significant deterioration in their barter terms of trade over the course of the twentieth century. This decline was neither continuous, nor was it distributed evenly among individual products, however. The data show that the far-reaching changes that the world economy underwent around 1920 and again around 1980 led to…

Potential output in Latin America: a standard approach for the 1950-2002 period

(*) This document was prepared by André A. Hofman of the Economic Projections Center of the Statistics Division, and Heriberto Tapia research assistant in the office of the Executive Secretary of ECLAC. The views expressed in this document, which has been reproduced without formal editing, are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Organization.. Abstract Potential output estimates are becoming increasingly important in policy design in Latin America (ECLAC, 2002) and the objective of this paper is to make a methodological contribution to this field of work…

Macroeconomic success and social vulnerability: lessons for Latin America from the Celtic Tiger

Abstract This paper uses a political economy approach to examine the nature and social impact of Ireland's economic 'miracle', namely the period of high economic growth known as the 'Celtic Tiger', which lasted from 1995 until 2000. Its principal purpose is to offer a broad and multifaceted reading of this period of Irish development, paying particular attention to the links between macroeconomic success and social vulnerability, in order to draw policy lessons for Latin America. The examination of the Celtic Tiger is prefaced by a brief introduction to some of the sa…

Modeling regional macroeconomic interactions: situation and perspectives for macroeconomic coordination in Latin America. Background paper prepared for the REDIMA workshop on Modeling Macroeconomic Coordination in the Andean Community, (Santiago, Chile...

Hubert Escaith is Director of Statistics and Economic Projections Division, ECLAC. The views expressed in this document, which has been reproduced without formal editing, are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Organization.. This paper was prepared for the REDIMA workshop on Modeling Macroeconomic Coordination in the Andean Community, Santiago, Chile 22 October 2003. Introduction The early 1990s opened a new era for the analysis of economic interactions between Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) countries. Two channels, real and financial, conveyed th…

Manual for the compilation of science and technology indicators in the Caribbean

Introduction Most nations have one or more governmental or non-profit agencies charged with collecting and analyzing science and technology data. These are sometimes referred to as science and technology observatories. Herman Jaramillo, in writing about science and technology observatories, has noted that an observatory, as an agency for collecting and processing indicators helps society to understand science and technology development and the integration of science and technology variables with other measures of economic and social development. The resulting information becomes a public…

Towards an integrated vision for dealing with instability and risk

This article puts forth a hypothesis and a challenge. The hypothesis: structural change in the international economy and in the management of public policy has brought about changes in economic performance, affected employment, poverty, and equity and resulted in greater insecurity and uncertainty. The challenge: coping with this insecurity and uncertainty despite public policy's abandonment of its historical role and the lack of success thus far of the new approaches. This study points to the greater vulnerability today stemming from the labour market as well as asymmetries in trends in …

Handbook for estimating the socio-economic and environmental effects of disasters

ECLAC, transnational corporations and the quest for a Latin American development strategy

This paper analyses the role assigned to foreign direct investment and transnational corporations in the ECLAC development project, examining the history of the institution and its most representative publications. With impressive continuity in its vision and policy recommendations, ECLAC has recognized the need for foreign investment as an aid for Latin American development, but has been cautious about its consequences. ECLAC has continually called for close scrutiny and regulation of the activities of transnational corporations. The main idea underlying these recommendations is that Latin Am…

The terms of trade for commodities in the twentieth century

This paper looks at the evolution of the terms of trade between commodities and manufactures in the twentieth century. A statistical analysis of the relative price series for 24 commodities and eight indices reveals a significant deterioration in their barter terms of trade over the years 1900 to 2000. This decline was not continuous, however, nor was it distributed evenly among individual products. As is shown here, the far-reaching changes that the world economy underwent around 1920 and again around 1980 led to a stepwise deterioration which, over the long term, was reflected in a decline o…