Barbados urged to deepen platform economy, trade readiness

Barbados must urgently strengthen its productive capacity and deepen regional integration if it is to convert market access into real economic gains, a senior trade official warned on Monday, pointing to persistent structural weaknesses and rising global standards that continue to limit competitiveness.

Director of Foreign Trade in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Paula Byer told the ceremony marking the end of the European Union’s Economic Partnership Agreement at the Courtyard by Marriott on Monday, that while trade agreements create opportunities, Barbados and the wider Caribbean must strengthen their productive capacity and competitiveness to fully benefit.

The 11th European Development Fund (EDF) Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) Programme is a European Union-funded regional initiative designed to help Europe’s former colonies, now grouped as CARIFORUM states, to implement and benefit from the CARIFORUM-EU EPA.

Reflecting on the programme’s achievements under the 11th round of trade and economic cooperation under the European Development Fund — known as the 11th EDF — Byer underscored the importance of international cooperation for small island developing states.

“For small vulnerable economies such as ours, development partnerships are not optional. They’re essential,” she said.

“While trade agreements such as the CARIFORUM-EU EPA and the CSME create market access, access alone does not guarantee participation and benefits. Our ability to benefit from these agreements ultimately depends on productive capacity, institutional readiness, and competitiveness.”

Byer noted the long-standing structural hurdles facing micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) across the Caribbean, including limited production scale, high logistics costs, small domestic markets, export readiness gaps and stiff competition from larger firms and lower-priced imports.

She also highlighted the growing importance of quality infrastructure in global trade, noting that businesses must meet increasingly strict standards in testing, certification and accreditation to remain viable in export markets.

“Without meeting those requirements, our products simply cannot compete,” she warned.

Beyond compliance, she said investment is also needed in product development, packaging, branding and export marketing – areas where many small firms remain under-resourced. Port efficiency, she added, is another critical issue for island economies heavily dependent on maritime trade.

“Delays and inefficiencies directly affect our competitiveness and the cost of doing business,” Byer said.

She noted that the EPA programme had been designed to address many of these barriers through support for modern border management systems, trade facilitation reforms and digital solutions aimed at reducing costs and improving efficiency.

“Here in Barbados, we’re pleased that progress on the port community system is improving coordination, transparency and cargo processing time, an essential step toward enhancing our trade performance,” she said.

The programme has also strengthened regional quality infrastructure and supported agriculture and agro-processing by improving certification services, value chains and export readiness, particularly for small producers.

“These efforts recognise a fundamental truth — our MSMEs are the backbone of Caribbean economies, yet they face the greatest barriers in international trade,” Byer said.

Linking the initiative to Barbados’ national development goals, she argued that deeper regional integration is essential.

“A stronger, more integrated platform economy allows us to pool our resources, expand production networks, and compete more effectively on the global stage, while external partnerships remain critical to our export diversification and sustainable growth.”

As global trade evolves through digitalisation, sustainability standards and changing consumer demands, Barbados must continue investing in modern trade infrastructure, strong regulatory systems and innovation within the private sector, Byer added. 

Running during the 2014–2020 EDF cycle, with activities extending into the mid-2020s, the 11th EDF programme has focused on strengthening trade capacity across the Caribbean by supporting customs and border management reforms, improving quality infrastructure such as standards and certification systems, and enhancing the competitiveness of sectors including agriculture and agro-processing.

It has also promoted regional integration and private sector development, particularly among micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, to better position Caribbean economies to access and compete in international markets. 

The EPA replaced the Lome and Cotonou trade and aid agreements between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific states.

(SB)