Highly indebted Caribbean countries like Barbados must reduce their fiscal and external imbalances but the private sector has to take the lead role in investment and growth in the region.
This was among the conclusions of a recent high-level meeting in The Bahamas convened by the International Monetary?Fund (IMF) involving officials from governments and financial institutions as they sought the key to restoring growth in the Caribbean hit by nearly six years of stagnant economic activity.
According to conclusions from the high-level forum: “The Caribbean has inherent strengths and comparative advantages in key sectors that have not been fully exploited and [held] considerable potential as sources of economic growth in the near term.”
An IMF release said the conference concluded that “reforms to the labour market” should be undertaken.
It added that research showed that “removing rigidities to wage-setting could have important positive effects on employment and growth”.
