Trade and Development - the Caribbean Perspective

  Nearshoring. That old concept which has attracted renewed focus and attention. In the present Covid-19 ravaged global economy, there is renewed discussions on this concept -  particularly for strategic industries such as food and medicine.  Given this, what exactly does the concept mean? What are its implications? What is the Caribbean context in this conversation? Stick around if you are interested in my responses to these questions. Nearshoring is where a country's imports or a company's purchases are sourced from geographically-closer suppliers. For example, if the Caribbean changes its supplier for medical equipment from those in the US to those in Barbados, it has engaged in nearshoring. The implications of this can include first, lower probabilities of disruption to supply chains. This is because shorter geographical distances generates lower possibilities of unexpected developments and a less complex transportation route. Second, changes in purchasing price. If ...

  Introduction Caribbean news was recently abuzz with Barbados’ plan to remove the Queen as its Head of State, which would signal a severing of some of the last vestiges of its legislative colonial ties. In the aftermath of that announcement, some of the media in the Global North pounced on China as the instigator of this change, suggesting thereby that our own Caribbean leaders could not themselves be credited with such a move. As a budding trade professional, my thoughts pivoted to the underlying recognition of the importance of strategic relations, in particular, in matters of trade.   The result is this Shridath Ramphal Centre (SRC) Trading Thoughts which provides a snapshot of the Caribbean’s main trading relations, chronicles developments with some of their trade partners arising from COVID-19 and finally proposes recommendations for future trading relations and strategies. Brief Snapshot of Caribbean Trade A country or region’s trade profile is inherently embedd...