The picture, Ladies and Gentlemen, is one where policymakers in our major export markets of the United States and Europe are battling weak growth, stubbornly high unemployment, widening fiscal deficits and burgeoning public debt. And what about the Caribbean, which accounts for a substantial share of our exports?
While the Caribbean region as a whole appears to be gradually recovering from the deep recession caused by the global economic crisis, the twin constraints of low growth and high debt are weighing on regional economic prospects, and the state of affairs in the Eastern Caribbean is not too encouraging. Some Caribbean countries have approached the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for financial support.