CARICOM Secretary-General Dr Carla Barnett has called for urgent global cooperation to address the rising cost of insurance in the tourism sector of Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

Speaking during a high-level panel at the 6th Global Services Forum, held as part of the 16th United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD16) last week, Dr Barnett highlighted the vulnerability of CARICOM’s service-based economies to increasingly frequent and intense climate events.

“The cost of insurance is rising significantly for older properties [in the tourism sector], and accessing insurance for new investments is almost impossible. This is something we need to work with the global community to address.”

The Forum, themed “Services: A New Frontier of Economic Transformation for Equitable, Inclusive and Sustainable Development, explored the role of the services sector in driving economic growth, job creation, and exports. It highlighted that services now account for two-thirds of global GDP, and in CARICOM states such as The Bahamas, Saint Lucia, and Barbados, the figure rises to 75 percent.

Even in more diversified economies like Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica, services contribute around 60 percent of GDP, the Secretary-General said.

“When weather systems like Hurricane Melissa threaten, stakeholders in the tourism industry get really frightened,” she said, adding, “we do the best we can, but we prepare for the worst.”

Dr Barnett noted the importance of international partnerships in helping CARICOM countries close structural gaps and build resilience. In this regard, she said that cooperation with UNCTAD, the World Trade Organization (WTO), and international development banks is critical to strengthen institutional and service provider capacity.

UNCTAD’s collaboration with CARICOM through the Trade in Services project is one such example of international collaboration to build the data infrastructure needed for evidence-based policymaking and transformative growth, she noted.

The CARICOM services sector spans tourism, financial services, ICT, professional services, entertainment, cultural and sporting services. Dr. Barnett reiterated that targeted global support is essential to unlock the full potential of these industries and safeguard them against climate-related shocks.