Abstract Three 2010

GLOBAL

DEVELOPMENT STUDIES

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Volume Six Winter-Spring 2010 Numbers 1-2.

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THEME: THE GLOBAL FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC CRISIS: IMPLICATIONS FOR THE CARIBBEAN REGION

THE IMPLICATION OF THE CURRENT FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC CRISIS ON INTEGRATION:

THE CARIBBEAN EXPERIENCE

Diedron Lewis*, Samantha C. Joseph**, Khellon Q. Roach***

University of the West Indies, St. Augustine

Trinidad and Tobago

Published Online: March 15, 2017

ABSTRACT

The current global financial and economic crisis has engendered a number of challenges for national economies. The impact of the crisis on the survival of regional blocs has attracted much attention. The interdependence of global and regional economies has increased the vulnerability of numerous national economies to the contagion effects of the present crisis. Caribbean countries are no different in this regard, and the challenges emanating from the crisis have exacerbated the already difficult economic conditions facing the region. In light of the crisis and its associated challenges, the Caribbean is now at a critical decision point with respect to its drive for deeper regional cooperation. The crisis threatens the core of the region’s integration initiative and also provides opportunities to strengthen regional ties. This article, therefore, examines whether the strategic responses of individual CARICOM member states and the Community as a whole facilitate or hinder deeper integration within the region. The article posits that the sustainability of the region’s integration initiative lies in the adoption of a pragmatic and coordinated regional response to the crisis.