Source: https://www.statista.com/statistics/789517/caribbean-direct-contribution-travel-tourism-gdp-country/

1. Introduction: The Economic Crossroads of the Caribbean

The Caribbean region stands at a critical economic and developmental juncture. For too long, the economic engine of these nations has been fueled by tourism, financial services, and the sale of passports sectors that promise quick monetary returns but fail to build lasting economic resilience. The COVID-19 pandemic, frequent hurricanes, and tightening global visa regulations have collectively exposed the fragility of this model.

As the region grapples with mounting debt, persistent youth unemployment, and brain drain, it must confront a difficult but necessary question: Is the current economic model sustainable? Increasingly, the answer is no. Instead, the Caribbean must embrace Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) as the cornerstone of a new economic vision—one based on skills, production, and self-reliance.

This shift is not merely pragmatic but deeply aligned with the foundational vision of Caribbean integration and development laid down by the region’s founding fathers, particularly Sir Arthur Lewis, who championed labour, productivity, and skills as central to Caribbean development.

2. The Legacy of Labour: A Historical Overview

Exploitative and externally driven labour systems have long shaped the Caribbean’s economy. During colonial times, enslaved and trafficked African victims, and later indentured labourers, generated immense wealth through their forced labour on plantations, while colonial elites reaped the benefits without engaging in productive work.

Even after independence, many Caribbean nations did not radically transform their economies. Instead, they replaced one form of dependency with another, shifting from sugar, cocoa, nutmeg, cotton and bananas to hotels, beaches, passport sales, offshore banking and banking secrecy. This has continued to devalue manual labour and skills, marginalizing TVET systems and steering the workforce into seasonal, low-wage, service based roles.

As a result, skilled tradespeople, engineers, technicians, and digital workers remain in short supply. Too many young people pursue academic degrees, such as philosophy, human resource management, and hotel and tourism management, which do not align with labour market needs, while the education system continues to undervalue vocational training.

3. Tourism and Passport Sales: A Fragile Foundation

Tourism contributes between 45% and 90% of GDP in many Caribbean states. While it provides jobs and foreign exchange, it also makes economies vulnerable to external shocks:

• Barbados’ economy contracted by over 14% in 2020 due to a 60% drop in tourist arrivals.
• Countries like Saint Lucia and The Bahamas experienced severe unemployment and GDP decline during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Natural disasters like Hurricane Irma and Maria disrupted tourism for years, affecting recovery and revenue streams.

Tourism is also seasonal, low-paying, and undiversified, leading to precarious livelihoods and limited upward mobility.

4. The Illusion of Citizenship-by-Investment (CIP)

Citizenship-by-Investment Programs (CIPs) have become a cornerstone of economic policy for several Caribbean nations, including St. Kitts & Nevis, Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, and St. Lucia. These programs, which grant passports to foreign investors in exchange for financial contributions, have been marketed as a quick fix for economic growth. However, beneath the surface of immediate revenue lies a troubling reality: CIPs are an illusion of prosperity. Rather than fostering sustainable development, they create economic dependency, diplomatic vulnerabilities, and long-term structural weaknesses.

The False Promise of Economic Stability. Proponents argue that CIPS provide much-needed foreign exchange, infrastructure funding, and debt relief. For example,          St. Kitts & Nevis’ CIP has contributed over 60% of government revenue in some years, and Dominica’s program helped fund hurricane recovery and housing projects. Yet, these benefits are short-lived and unstable, unlike TVET, manufacturing, agriculture, or technology sectors.  CIPS do not create jobs for locals, as most revenue goes to government coffers, not wages. They are highly volatile as they depend on global investor sentiment, for example, Russian applicants dropped after sanctions.  They also encourage a “rentier economy” where nations rely on selling citizenship rather than productive industries, and a significant portion of income and wealth is derived from the ownership of assets that generate economic rent, rather than from the productive process of creating goods and services. This contrasts with a “productive economy” where income comes from value creation through labour, entrepreneurship, or innovation.

5. The Vision of Sir Arthur Lewis: Skills as the Foundation

Nobel Laureate Sir Arthur Lewis, the region’s most eminent economist, argued that economic growth must be based on expanding the productive sectors of the economy, especially manufacturing and agriculture. His dual sector model warned against overreliance on services and emphasised the central role of Technical Vocational Education and Training, Certification, free movement of skilled labour and development.

In the early days of CARICOM and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), the vision was clear: Guyana would serve as the agricultural base, Trinidad and Tobago would lead in industrialization and energy, Barbados and Jamaica would develop finance and services but always within a framework of regional self-sufficiency, cooperation, and skills-based development.

Unfortunately, self-serving political leaders abandoned this blueprint in favour of easier profits from tourism and passport schemes. This betrayal of vision has left the Caribbean vulnerable, unequal, and economically stagnant.

6. TVET: The Key to Economic Transformation

Learning from China’s Model: A Blueprint for the Caribbean

China’s remarkable transformation from a low-income agrarian society to one of the world’s leading industrial powers was not a matter of chance—it was the result of deliberate, long-term planning and massive investment in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET). The Chinese government implemented a nationwide strategy that emphasised manufacturing and industrialisation. From electronics to machinery, China focused on becoming a production powerhouse.

Strategic Sectors: Key investments were made in logistics, renewable energy, shipbuilding, and information and communication technologies (ICT), all supported by a pipeline of technically trained workers.

Cultural Respect for Trades: Unlike many regions where vocational careers are stigmatised, China cultivated a deep national respect for technical skills and trades, ensuring they were seen as valuable and respectable career paths.

As a result, China trained millions of students through vocational institutes, producing the human capital necessary for advanced manufacturing, solar panel production, infrastructure development, and high-tech innovation.

In stark contrast, the Caribbean continues to undervalue, underfund, and underutilise TVET. Despite repeated recommendations and policy support from major regional and international institutions the World Bank, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), and even the Government of Canada, TVET remains on the margins of national development strategies across the region.

The cultural stigma attached to manual and technical work still runs deep. Many Caribbean youths are steered toward traditional academic paths that do not align with labour market realities, while skilled trades essential for infrastructure, industry, and technological progress are overlooked. This has resulted in labour shortages in key sectors, a rising dependence on skilled foreign workers, and the underdevelopment of domestic industry.

If the Caribbean is to build a resilient, self-sufficient, and future-ready economy, it must do what China did: prioritize technical and vocational education as a foundation for national growth. The blueprint already exists—the region must act on it.

7. Caribbean Potential:

If Skills Are Developed

Renewable Energy: With high electricity costs and abundant sun and wind, the region could train technicians in solar installation, wind turbine maintenance, and energy auditing, develop local energy manufacturing, and reduce fossil fuel imports.

Marine and Blue Economy: the Caribbean’s geographic advantage is underutilised; it needs skilled workers in ship repair, port logistics, fishing technology, and marine engineering to generate high-value employment.

Tech and BPO Sectors: Jamaica’s digital services industry shows regional promise, but companies struggle to find highly trained IT staff, hindering competitiveness. TVET programs in coding, cybersecurity, and digital project management can unlock massive growth.

Agro-Processing and Light Manufacturing: Food imports dominate Caribbean trade deficits. However, with training in food science, packaging, and machinery, the region can develop value-added exports like coconut water, spices, jams, and sauces.

8. The Role of Labour Market Intelligence: Skills Audits and LMIS

Labour Market Information Systems (LMIS) and Skills Audits are essential for matching training to industry needs. Yet, only Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, and Turks and Caicos have completed national skills audits in recent years.

This is a serious oversight. A skills audit provides:

• A map of current skill gaps in construction, ICT, healthcare, and tourism sectors.
• Guidance for education institutions on what to teach.
• Data that reassures investors of workforce readiness.

Guyana’s oil boom provides a stark case study. Billions of dollars in investment have flowed in, yet the majority of skilled positions, welders, pipefitters, engineers, are being filled by foreigners because the local workforce lacks training, As such a National Skills Audit was recently conducted in Guyana by the Canadian Research form of Dunn Pierre Barnett and Company and concrete measures were taken to solve the problem.

9. Barriers to TVET Expansion and How to Overcome Them

Stigma and Cultural Bias

TVET is often seen as “less than” academic education in every Caribbean country. Parents (especially mothers) and students fear that it leads to low-status, low-paying jobs and a lack of social mobility.

To reverse this, the governments and the National Training Authorities have to:

• Launch public awareness campaigns showing successful tradespeople, entrepreneurs, and engineers who came through TVET.
• Introduce TVET career pathways that lead to tertiary education and business ownership.
• Give more TVET scholarships to students,
• Expose children to skills training at an early age

Outdated Infrastructure and Curriculum

Many TVET institutions are under-resourced and understaffed. Equipment is outdated, and curricula often lack alignment with modern industry needs.

Governments must:

• Invest in upgrading training facilities.
• From partnerships with industry to co-design courses.
• Leverage regional cooperation to share trainers and certification systems.

Weak Policy and Funding

TVET is typically underfunded in national budgets. Ministries of Education often treat it as an afterthought.

Solutions include:

• Creating dedicated TVET authorities with cross-ministerial mandates.
• Including TVET in national development and export strategies.
• Attracting public-private partnerships to scale programs.

My final thoughts: A call to the Return of our Foundational Vision

The founding vision of the Caribbean was not built on beaches and passport sales: it was built on people, skills, and regional unity. Sir Arthur Lewis, CARICOM, and the Caribbean Development Bank all emphasized that true development must come from within, from the capabilities, knowledge, and craftsmanship of the Caribbean people.

The choice before us is clear:

• Continue to chase fragile, short-term profits from tourism and citizenship sales OR
• Invest in skills, production, and dignity through a modern, robust, and respected TVET ecosystem.

Only the latter will break the cycle of dependence, empower the next generation, and build a Caribbean that owns its future.

” Let us rise not by the tide of tourists or the stroke of a visa stamp but by the strength of our skilled hands, brilliant minds, and bold vision”

References

1. Statista. (2023). Caribbean: direct contribution of travel and tourism to GDP by country. Retrieved from: https://www.statista.com/statistics/789517/caribbean-direct-contribution-travel-tourism-gdp-country/
2. World Bank. (2022). The Future of Work in the Caribbean: What Will Drive Employment and Productivity in the Region. Washington, D.C.: World Bank Publications. Retrieved from: https://documents.worldbank.org
3. Caribbean Development Bank (CDB). (2021). TVET and Workforce Development in the Caribbean: Analysis and Recommendations. Bridgetown, Barbados: CDB. Retrieved from: https://www.caribank.org
4. Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB). (2022). Position Paper on Human Capital Development and Skills Mismatch in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union. Retrieved from: https://www.eccb-centralbank.org
5. Caricom Secretariat. (2010). Regional TVET Strategy for Workforce Development and Economic Competitiveness 2012–2021. Georgetown, Guyana: CARICOM. Retrieved from: https://caricom.org
6. Lewis, W. Arthur. (1955). The Theory of Economic Growth. Homewood, IL: Irwin. (See Chapter 5: “Education, Skills, and Development”)
7. UNESCO-UNEVOC. (2021). Technical and Vocational Education and Training in the Caribbean: Opportunities and Challenges. Bonn, Germany: UNESCO. Retrieved from: https://unevoc.unesco.org
8. International Monetary Fund (IMF). (2021). Eastern Caribbean Currency Union: Selected Issues Paper—Tourism, Climate Risk, and Recovery. IMF Country Report No. 21/49. Retrieved from: https://www.imf.org
9. OECD Development Centre. (2020). Strengthening Human Capital through TVET in Developing Countries: Lessons from China’s TVET Reform. Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved from: https://www.oecd.org
10. Dunn Pierre Barnett and Company Canada Ltd. (2023). Guyana National Skills Audit: Final Report. Toronto, Canada: DPBG. (Commissioned by the Government of Guyana with support from Global Affairs Canada)