Mighty Sector, Marginal Exports: Reflections on the SBA MSME Report 2026
Alicia Nicholls$*Despite accounting for 98% of businesses in Barbados, fewer than one in ten Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) export. This striking finding was reported in the Small Business Association (SBA)’s newly released ‘National Survey of the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprise Sector 2026’. It underscores a persistent challenge within our import-dependent economy: how can we get more of our firms exporting. In this SRC Trading Thoughts, I reflect on some of the report’s findings from a trade policy perspective.
Caribbean Sea: Zone of Peace and Prosperity
Alicia Nicholls$*Lapping against the shores of several sovereign countries and dependent territories, the Caribbean Sea is our patrimony. Many of us learnt how to swim or were even baptized in its serene and azure waters. It sustains us economically through fisheries, shipping, tourism, and many other ways. This is why news of United…
Why the WTO Appellate Body Crisis Matters to the Caribbean
Dr. Jan Yves Remy and Alicia Nicholls$*The Appellate Body (AB) of the World Trade Organization (WTO) – the final court charged with hearing appeals on points of law at the WTO – faces an existential crisis. On 10 December 2019, the terms of two of its remaining three members – the quorum needed to adjudicate an appeal – will expire. Their positions will not be filled if the current United States (US) blockage of appointments continues. This means that new appeals of panel decisions will not be heard after that date.
Given Caribbean countries’ limited and ‘checkered’ experience with…