St. Lucia’s Economic Future Hangs by a Thread

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) put out a bleak report on the economic future of St. Lucia, a small Caribbean island that’s still dealing with high unemployment rates regardless of a solid 3.7 percent growth in 2003.

The Washington-based banking institution warned the poor going of the banana industry, coupled with the country’s scarce ability to keep the Gross Domestic Product growing, will also have a negative impact on the local job market.

The IMF report indicates the St. Lucian economy edged up a little bit last year thanks in part to a robust 17 percent increase of the local travel industry.

“However, that growth has not yielded good overall results for the whole island nation because economic development has simply slumped,” the report states.

Unemployment on the island is still hovering around 16 and 18 percent of the active workforce.

The IMF report concludes that St. Lucian authorities need to implement fiscal responsibility actions, preserve those reforms that benefit the private sector and branch out competition if it really intends to make its economy grow in the near future.