Analysis Of Agricultural Research Priorities In The Caribbean

This report assesses trends in investments, human resource capacity, and research outputs in agricultural R&D—excluding the private (for-profit) sector—in LAC. It is an update of Stads and Beintema (2009), covering a more complete set of countries and focusing primarily on developments during 2006–2012/2013.1 The analysis draws largely from a set of country factsheets prepared by Agricultural Science and Technology Indicators (ASTI), which is led by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), using comprehensive datasets derived from primary surveys and additional secondary sources targeting close to 700 agencies in 27 LAC countries.

Although the agricultural sector contributes only 0.5% to Trinidad and Tobago’s GDP, it accounts for over 4% of employment and is important for the diversification of the economy. The Government of Trinidad and Tobago supports agriculture through a combination of incentives to agricultural producers, support for research and infrastructure, and border protection measures. Support to producers averaged 22.4% of gross farm receipts in 2013-2015, and a significant share of that support (44%) was provided in the form of transfers to general services. At the same time, total transfers arising from agricultural policy amounted to only 0.34% of the national GDP. Reorienting agricultural policy towards goals and actions that are less production-distorting, and that address agricultural productivity and profitability, will help create a possibly small, but efficient agricultural sector, as well as exploit certain specific competitive advantages.

Strategic investments in the agriculture sector are a catalyst for sustainable, economic growth and poverty reduction. Through their partnership, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) have produced this comprehensive study on the State of Agriculture in the Caribbean, drawing upon decades of research on the many drivers of change affecting the CDB’s Borrowing Member Countries (BMCs), including international trade, institutional policies, and climate change. This report follows forty years of structural change in the agriculture sector of BMCs, and can support the development of an updated Agriculture Sector Strategy, by identifying key trends in agriculture in BMCs, and the related opportunities for investments in support of growth, poverty reduction, and sustainability. The Study concludes that agriculture can be an important source for economic growth and a key contributor to poverty reduction, particularly for households that are profiting less from the growth in other sectors. Through the promotion of inclusive and sustainable agricultural development, CDB can play an instrumental role in supporting BMCs in meeting their SDGs targets particularly in relation to socio-economic and environmental challenges, including poverty (SDG1) food and nutrition insecurity (SDG2), obesity (SDG3), youth unemployment (SDG8), resilient infrastructure (SDG9), gender inequality (SDG5), sustainable use of natural resources, and climate change (SDG13).

The last decade has seen a growing body of research about globalization and climate change in the Caribbean. This collection is a significant addition to the literature on a topic that is of critical importance to the region. It explores research from a number of Caribbean islands dealing with a range of issues related to agriculture and food in the context of globalization and climate change. Using a broad livelihoods perspective, the impacts on rural livelihoods are explored as well as issues related to community level resilience, adaptability and adaptations. The volume is strengthened by gendered analyses of issues and discussions informed by a diverse range of research methods and methodologies. Scholars of Caribbean studies and studies pertaining to social, cultural, economic and environmental issues facing Small Island Developing States (SIDS) will greatly benefit from this book.