Connectivity for Caribbean Countries : An Initial Assessment
Every discussion of the Caribbean states considers their characteristics as sea-locked countries, small economies, highly vulnerable to natural disasters, and a geographic platform that calls for regional cooperation and integration. The Caribbean...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Publications & Research |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank Group, Washington, DC
2015
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2015/01/23840414/connectivity-caribbean-countries-initial-assessment http://hdl.handle.net/10986/21397 |
| Summary: | Every discussion of the Caribbean states
considers their characteristics as sea-locked countries,
small economies, highly vulnerable to natural disasters, and
a geographic platform that calls for regional cooperation
and integration. The Caribbean Sea is the most important
vehicle and the most challenging obstacle Caribbean
countries have to connect with the world. This report
measures and analyzes the Caribbean region's air and
maritime connectivity, by taking a sample of 15 countries
that represent 64 percent of the Caribbean population and 59
percent of the region's gross domestic product. The
report finds that the most salient issue of Caribbean
logistics is the huge costs associated with trade, driven by
embedded inefficiencies in customs systems and document
preparation processes. The report also documents how the
Caribbean air transport network is characterized by fierce
competition between the islands for tourists from abroad,
rather than coordinated efforts to promote Caribbean
tourism. This has led to suboptimal routing based on
distorting subsidy schemes with often unstainable volumes
and load factors, raising questions about the sustainability
of many of the extra-Caribbean routes, and indicating a need
for route consolidation. Air connectivity within and among
Caribbean states is poor and represents an opportunity to
develop alternative and more competitive private sector-led
services such as inter-island ferries and low-cost air
shuttle services. Maritime connectivity for freight is well
structured around two coexisting and functional
hub-and-spoke systems (intra-regional with a hub in Trinidad
and extra-regional with a hub in the Miami area) that
effectively serve all the Caribbean countries. Yet, tariffs
are high by worldwide standards and are likely driven by
high market concentration in a handful of shipping liners. |
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