Serious financing problems are a major concern of social security policy makers around the world. Global trends such as population aging, diminishing job stability and a secular decline in interest rates have exacerbated pressures on many systems that are struggling to fulfil their social mandates of poverty alleviation and income smoothing. Caribbean social insurance systems … [Read more...] about Small Countries, Greater Opportunities: Social Insurance Systems in the Caribbean
Steadying the Ship: Small Island Developing States and Fiscal Sustainability
There is growing concern about the debt sustainability of Caribbean countries, particularly in the wake of the pandemic, which led to sharply increased deficits. Recent research, as summarized in the latest edition of the IDB’s Caribbean Economics Quarterly (Rosenblatt, Clayton, & Mooney December 2023), suggests that although debt levels in the Caribbean may be weakly … [Read more...] about Steadying the Ship: Small Island Developing States and Fiscal Sustainability
Gender gaps in education in the Caribbean: are girls doing better than boys?
The Caribbean region has made considerable progress in terms of access to education, achieving virtually universal primary school enrollment and similar levels of educational attainment relative to comparable countries. However, there are persistent learning inequalities throughout students’ life cycles as they progress from primary to secondary and tertiary education. … [Read more...] about Gender gaps in education in the Caribbean: are girls doing better than boys?
A New Year’s Fiscal Resolution: Deal with Debt in the Caribbean
Caribbean economies have recovered from the pandemic-induced recession, but one legacy that lingers is public debt accumulation. This was an inevitable consequence of the sharp economic decline and social needs created by the pandemic, and with the recovery, progress has been made in lowering the burden of public debt. Yet, average debt levels remain elevated, and changing … [Read more...] about A New Year’s Fiscal Resolution: Deal with Debt in the Caribbean
How can the latest Survey of Living Conditions in Suriname help with the pursuit of development
To design effective policies that can improve the living conditions of households and individuals, it is crucial to keep track of the changing realities on the ground. Surveys are a powerful tool for that. In the case of Suriname, the country faced several challenges in the past few years. The country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, which reached its … [Read more...] about How can the latest Survey of Living Conditions in Suriname help with the pursuit of development