Caribbean Studies

Running Head : Colonialism in Current Caribbean Economy

The Legacy of Colonialism in the Current Caribbean Economy

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The Legacy of Colonialism in the Current Caribbean Economy

In the 21st century , the Caribbean faces many economic problems that can be attributed to their history of colonialism . Throughout hundreds of years of colonization , the islands of the Caribbean were ruled and squabbled over by several European countries , mainly Spain , England and France (Historyworld .net , 2007 . This segregation resulted in each island forming its own culture and economy

, rather than developing as a unified community . Today , there are over 16 forms of currencies used within the group of small islands (XE .com , 2007

While other countries were developing sophisticated economies based on a diverse range of imports and exports , skills , and trades , the Caribbean was limited to agriculture . Namely the production and export of sugar crops , and to a lesser degree : tobacco and sugar . This narrow economic focus meant that little exploration was done into other possible areas of income . Since the goal of the colonists was to focus on the most profitable industry at the time , the islands have not developed a wide enough variety of marketable skills or products to sustain economic health and growth (Hilaire , 2000

The Caribbean economy is still highly reliant on outside money , in the form of visitors and holiday makers . Over 70 of the GDP of some islands comes from tourism (Caribbean-guide .info , 2007 ) The Caribbean relies so heavily on its tourism industry , that its economy is tied to the US with some islands having a constant exchange rate between the US dollar and their own currency (Caribbean-guide .info , 2007 ) This reliance on the strength of a foreign currency is one example of how the legacy of colonization has created an acceptable dependence on larger more powerful nations to foster Caribbean economic security

The Caribbean has only a marginal role in the modern globalized economy and relies heavily on its seasonal tourism industry (Caribbean-guide .info , 2007 ) The move away from preferential trade agreements with America and Europe for bananas was one significant event that stressed the importance of the Caribbean finding a more independent way to create a stable and strong economy (Francis , 2006 ) This prompted the Caribbean community (CARICOM ) to seek strength in numbers through the formation of the new Single Market and Economy (CSME ) to create a stronger position for external trade . While this was a positive move , more measures need to be taken in for the Caribbean to find beneficial trade agreements , and remain competitive with other larger Latin American countries (Jessop , 2007

Many companies in the Caribbean are still family owned (BBC .co .uk 2007 ) This form of industry is unable to compete in today 's global marketplace . A lack of capital and skilled workforce are other hindrances to this region . This could be contributed to the fact that it is only since the gradual abolition of slavery in the Caribbean islands the 19th century that the local people have been able to own property or businesses , or receive an education (Caribbeanedu .com 2007

Owen Arthur , Barbados ' Prime Minister , recently applauded the one company 's move to list themselves on the London Stock Exchange , saying that he hope to see more companies `that are Caribbean in their ownership but global in their focus (Cited in Jessop , 2007 ) This way of thinking , if followed by governments and other companies , may help the Caribbean find a more steady footing in the new global economy

References

Historyworld .net

Caribbean-guide .info

XE .com

Caribbeanedu .com

BBC Caribbean . Jessop , D (2007 , April 17 ) A Caribbean Company goes global . Retrieved February 23 , 2008 from HYPERLINK "http /www .bbc .co .uk /caribbean /news /story /2007 /04 /070402_jessop .shtml http /www .bbc .co .uk /caribbean /news /story /2007 /04 /070402_jessop shtml

Francis , K (2006 ) Island Economics : Free Trade in the Caribbean Harvard International Review , 28

Hilaire , A (2000 ) Caribbean Approaches to Economic Stabilization IMF Working 00 /73 (Washington : International Monetary Fund

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