The case for financing: Caribbean resilience building in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic

The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic has not only been sudden but has required significant re-adjustment on the part of world economies with far-reaching effects anticipated in the short to medium term. For vulnerable Caribbean economies already challenged by high debt service payments, external support is needed to fill the resource gap. The objective of this report is to assess the impact of the pandemic imposed restrictions across six critical sectors and to provide policy recommendations to ensure a swift recovery and make a case for greater external concessional financial support to the fiscally challenged economies of the subregion. The sectors examined include health, tourism, international transportation, energy, education and social protection.