Caribbean Development Trends

Each year the IDB group gathers international thought leaders and high-level policy-makers from the Caribbean region. The Annual Consultation of Caribbean Governors, as it is called, is an opportunity for 6 Ministers of Finance and Planning from the region and 1 representative from the Caribbean Development Bank to engage influential leaders on the cutting edge of technology … [Read more...] about The Influential Seven:  More than a Talk Shop

Despite tremendous strides towards economic stabilization, fiscal responsibility, and debt reduction, financial sector depth and development in Jamaica lags behind many of its peers. Recent improvements in institutional capacity, policy discipline, and structural factors suggest that there is considerable scope to accelerate financial sector development and to broaden access … [Read more...] about Why is financial inclusion so important, and what related challenges and opportunities does Jamaica face? (Part 2)

Despite tremendous strides towards economic stabilization, fiscal responsibility, and debt reduction, financial sector development, access, and inclusion in Jamaica lag behind many of its peers. Recent improvements in institutional capacity, policy discipline, and structural factors suggest that there is considerable scope to accelerate financial sector development and to … [Read more...] about What’s holding back financial deepening and development in Jamaica? (Part 1)

Economists are a depressing bunch. Our role is to anticipate and assess risks, which one could argue makes us too despondent. And if you’re lucky enough to get an optimistic outlook from one of us, it will follow by something like ‘on the other hand, the risks are skewed to the downside’. That said, we just published the December 2018 Caribbean Regional Quarterly Bulletin, … [Read more...] about The Caribbean Economic Outlook in Three Graphs