Working Papers

Development and Stabilization in Small Open Economies: Theories and Evidence from Caribbean Experience - Synopsis

This book analyses and explains the nature of the economies of small countries and territories. It includes an assessment of material prosperity in 41 small open economies worldwide, with case studies focusing on the Caribbean and Central America, and a review of the development of their economies in recent decades. The volume recommends a suite of economic policy tools for the management of these economies, demonstrating how these may best be employed in economies that live and breathe through international commerce.

The Impact of Covid-19 in Central America and the Caribbean - Evidence to Date

This study uses changes in the Human Development Index (HDI) between 2019 and 2021 as an early (and incomplete) indicator of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the countries of Central America and the Caribbean (CAC). The HDI, which has been published annually by the United Nations Development Programme since 1990, combines indices of the purchasing power of average national incomes (measured in US dollars), life expectancy, and average years of schooling, for each country. Except for Guyana and Nicaragua, the HDI score for every country in the CAC declined.

A Summary of Caribbean Economies’ Policy Responses to the Covid-19 Pandemic

A Summary of Caribbean Economies’ Policy Responses to the Covid-19 Pandemic, by Julia Jhinkoo-Ramdass, September 2021. The pandemic is crippling the economies of rich and poor countries alike, but for many low-income and fragile states, the economic shocks can become debilitating. The way forward from this new reality that we all face is still unknown on so many levels for every one of us. Governments have been implementing large-scale fiscal programmes geared towards easing the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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