Digital business service transformation of Caribbean economies : a path to sustainability

Abstract

The convergence of economic globalisation and the rise of automation has shifted the economic drivers of many countries away from manufacturing to knowledge-intensive service industries. Caribbean states however, continue to lag their counterparts in other emerging economies, many of whom have embraced the opportunities provided by digital technologies to engage in the global economy. Thus far, attempts to spur innovation and diversify beyond the traditional sectors of tourism and primary commodities that drive most Caribbean economies have met with only modest success. Many of these efforts have been stymied by the institutional, location and capacity constraints characteristic of small island states. This paper analyses the opportunities offered by Information and Communications Technology (ICT) to overcome the limitations of thin resource endowments by revolutionizing existing business models and altering how economic value is created. It identifies several challenges that policy makers will have to overcome and provides recommendations for implementing a developmental model that applies ICT to transform the non-tourism service sector.