Together For Prosperity in the OECS: Growth, Development, and Adversity in Small Island Developing States

Date
Oct 2017
Together for Prosperity is a macro-fiscal and social overview of how OECS member countries jointly faced challenges and achieved greater welfare over the past decade. By operating as a single currency union, countries achieved per capita GDP growth three times higher than the Latin American average (1980-2016). Growth was volatile and testament to the vulnerability of small island developing states to external shocks. Monetary policy was conducive to growth and maintained price and exchange rate stability. Despite the deterioration of public finances after 2009, which resulted from a combination of loose fiscal policy and the impact of natural disasters, the OECS countries would be on track to meet their public debt target of 60% of GDP by 2030 with additional fiscal consolidation efforts. In health, the OECS made remarkable progress in maternal and childcare and in education outcomes at the primary and secondary levels. Private sector performance was mixed despite having an investment-friendly environment. The six independent member countries of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) are: Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.