Can One Size Fit All? An Analysis of CARICOM Agricultural Development Policy Formulation

Agriculture is an economically important sector for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) contributing to food security and rural development. This is partly evidenced by the convening of the June 2007 Agriculture Donor Conference and the ongoing online discussion on arresting the decline of the sector. In this context, the paper identifies some core issues pertaining to agricultural policy for CARICOM countries, among these being: the macroeconomic environment, land and agro-climatic characteristics, institutional and infrastructural frameworks and the characteristics of agricultural enterprises. The discussion traces the agricultural policy formulation process within CARICOM then briefly examines established economic theory pertaining to agricultural development. A fundamental issue stressed is that the economic agent makes production decisions in his or her self interest. A schematic illustrating policy, market, technical and related influences on the decision environment of the economic agent, is used to highlight perceived agricultural policy deficiencies within the context of CARICOM country characteristics pertinent to agricultural output. Evidence presented on the diverse cross country macroeconomic, meso-economic, agro-ecological, institutional and infrastructural environments leads to the conclusion that a differentiated policy paradigm is more appropriate for the countries of CARICOM than the ‘one size fit all’ policy that is currently being pursued.