Caribbean Business Review
by Joseph Cox
Caribbean Business Review is the Caribbean's leading weekly business and applied economics programme.Hosted by Applied Economist Joseph Cox, Caribbean Business Review features policymakers, CEOs, investors and regional leaders examining the forces shaping Caribbean economies, financial markets, trade, innovation, technology and public policy.New episodes premiere every Sunday. Available on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and wherever you get your podcasts.
Episodes
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One Year After Hurricane Melissa: Where Is Jamaica's Recovery? | Keenan Falconer
One year after Hurricane Melissa, how much progress has Jamaica really made—and what is holding back the recovery? Jamaica has committed approximately J$84 billion to hurricane relief and reconstruction. Insurers have settled J$59.4 billion in claims. Yet the scale of rebuilding raises difficult...
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GREAT IDEAS. NO FUNDING. THE CARIBBEAN'S INVESTMENT GAP.
Caribbean entrepreneurs generate promising business ideas, yet too few become investment-ready projects capableof attracting financing. Is the problem a shortage of capital, weak project preparation, the wrong financing structures — or something more fundamental in the region’s investment...
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Trinidad’s FY2027 Budget: Ambitious Plan or Overpromise? | Dr Marlene Attzs
A smaller deficit. Higher spending. Uncertain energyrevenues. Can Trinidad and Tobago make the numbers—and the economy—work? Trinidad and Tobago's FY2027 Budget promises to reduce thefiscal deficit from TT$7 billion to TT$3.6 billion while increasing expenditure and public investment. But is this…
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Takes Cash to Care? — The Access to Finance Myth
Most Caribbean businesses that seek financing never clear due diligence. The reason is rarely a pure shortage of capital. Is the region’s biggest challenge a financing gap — or a shortage of investment-ready enterprises? Joseph Cox speaks with Dr Vishnu Doerga, Chairman of ActionINVEST Caribbean,...
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Who Controls the Audience? The Battle for Caribbean Media | Kiran Maharaj
Who controls what Caribbean audiences see—and whocaptures the value when they watch? The Caribbean media landscape is being transformed.Broadcasting once meant reaching the widest possible audience. Today, algorithms, streaming platforms, social media and increasingly sophisticated targeting…
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Jamaica’s Industrial Challenge: From Transshipment to Transformation | Anthony Hylton
Can Jamaica move beyond transshipment and enclave production to build an economy that creates more value at home? In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, former Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce Anthony Hylton makes the case for a National Industrial Policy for Jamaica and...
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Stuck at Start-Up: Why Caribbean Businesses Struggle to Scale | Harold Davis
The Caribbean has no shortage of entrepreneurs. But why do so few businesses make the transition from start-up to scalable enterprise? In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox sits down with Harold Davis, Deputy CEO of the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC), to…
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The Caribbean Needs a New Trade Strategy | Alicia Nicholls
Is market access enough to transform Caribbean trade? As tariffs, geopolitical tensions and a weakening multilateral trading system reshape global commerce, the Caribbean faces a deeper challenge: building the productive capacity to compete. International trade expert Alicia Nicholls, Founder of...
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When Your Workplace Turns Toxic: How to Recognise the Signs & Protect Your Career
When does a difficult workplace become a toxic one—and how do you know when it’s time to walk? In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox sits down with Jacquie Abram, Workplace Discrimination Consultant and author, for a candid conversation about how workplace toxicity develops—and...
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CCJ Under Scrutiny: Can Trust Be Rebuilt? | Marlene Malahoo Forte KC
Can trust in the Caribbean Court of Justice be rebuilt after the controversy surrounding its internal judicial processes? In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Marlene Malahoo Forte, KC, MP, former Attorney General and Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs of...
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CCJ on Life Support? Nigel Hughes on a Crisis of Confidence
Prominent Guyanese attorney Nigel Hughes, Managing Partner of Hughes, Fields and Stoby in Guyana, joins Caribbean Business Review following leakedinternal correspondence in which five sitting CCJ judges reportedly raised concerns involving panel composition, judicial influence and the exercise of...
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The Business Risk You’re Not Pricing: El Niño and the Caribbean Economy
What happens when a weather event becomes a balance-sheet risk? In Episode 6 of Season 4 of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Cherri-Ann Farquharson, Manager of Sustainable Development at Environmental Solutions Limited, about why El Niño is no longer simply a climate or weather...
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CBI Under Review: Caribbean's Next Move on Citizenship by Investment
The European Union is reviewing Caribbean Citizenship byInvestment (CBI) programmes, putting one of the Region's biggest sources of development finance under pressure. St Lucian Opposition Senatorand former CARICOM Single Market Director Leo Titus Preville joins host Joseph Cox to break down how...
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Can Caribbean Citizenship by Investment Survive the EU's 2028 Ultimatum? | Premier Mark Brantley
Can Caribbean Citizenship by Investment survive the European Union's June 2028 ultimatum? In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Coxspeaks with Premier Mark Brantley of Nevis about one of the most significant policy challenges facing the OECS and the wider Caribbean. The discussion...
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Jamaica's Insurance Costs: Are Regulatory Fees Driving Up Premiums?
Will higher regulatory fees strengthen Jamaicas financialsystem—or make insurance less affordable? In this episode ofCaribbean Business Review, JosephCox speaks with Everton McFarlane, Executive Director of the Insurance Association of Jamaica, about the Financial Services Commissions revised fee...
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Can Oil Wealth Build a Nation? | Winston Jordan on Guyana's Future Beyond Oil
Can one of the world's fastest-growing economies still leavemost of its people behind? In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Coxspeaks with former Minister of Finance of Guyana, Winston Jordan, about Guyana's oil economy, sovereign wealth, economic development, fiscal policy and…
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Will Caribbean Capital Markets Survive? | Marlene Street Forrest | Caribbean Business Review |
Major corporate exits are reshaping Caribbean capital markets. As anchor companies disappear, can regional exchanges remain competitive?In this Season 4 premiere of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Dr. Marlene Street-Forrest about liquidity, regional integration, institutional...
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The Food Security Paradox: Why the Caribbean Still Depends on Imported Food | Sandiford Edwards
Despite decades of strategies, declarations and policy commitments, the Caribbean remains heavily dependent on imported food. Why has progress been so slow, and what will it take to transform the region's food security ambitions into tangible outcomes? In Episode 21, the Season 3 Finale of...
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The Digital Ambition Gap: Why Caribbean Digital Transformation Remains Challenging
In Episode 20 of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox sits down with Gordon Foote, Founder of bSmarte Consulting Limited, to examine one of the Caribbean's most important strategic challenges: digital transformation.Why do so many digital initiatives struggle to achieve their intended outcomes?...
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Real Burnout Costs - What Leaders Miss
What if burnout isn’t simply a personal problem—but a signal that something deeper is happening inside our workplaces? In Episode 19 of Season 3 of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Mrs Cheryl Evans Lym, Head of Secretariat at the Human Resource Management Association of Jamaica…
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The Burnout Economy: Exhaustion, Relevance & the Caribbean Productivity Paradox
Are Caribbean societies becoming psychologically exhausted faster than they are becoming economically productive? In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with renowned Jamaican psychologist Dr. Leachim Semaj about burnout, workplace culture, cognitive overload, and the...
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Beyond Energy Independence | Belize’s Energy Strategy & the Emerging Food Security Squeeze
In Episode 17 of Season 3 of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Dr. Khadijah Usher, Director of Strategy, Business Development and Regulatory Affairs at Belize Electricity Limited. The discussion examines how Belize is navigating energy security in an era of geopolitical…
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Who pays when economies adjust—and labour markets cannot?
In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, we sit down with Wayne Chen, President of the Jamaica Employers Federation and President of the Caribbean Employers Confederation, to examine the structural constraints shaping labour markets across the Caribbean. Despite declining unemployment in...
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Caribbean SEZ Strategy: Opportunity or Illusion? | Ainsley Brown Explains
In Episode 15 of Season 3 of the Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Ainsley Brown, Knowledge Advisor at the World Free Zones Organization, on whether the Caribbean’s Special Economic Zones (SEZs) can move from fragmented participation to strategic positioning in global trade. The...
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Caribbean Energy Crisis Explained | LNG Shock, Oil Prices & Regional Vulnerability
The Caribbean is no longer dealing with high energy prices alone—it is confronting a shift from price shock to access constraint. In this episode of the Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Dr. Dax Driver, former CEO of the Energy Chamber of Trinidad and Tobago, on the region’s...
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Jamaica’s Labour Market, Productivity & Reform with Pearnel Charles Jr.
In this episode of the Caribbean Business Review, we examine Jamaica’s evolving labour market and the structural reforms now underway. In conversation with Pearnel Charles Jr., Minister of Labour and Social Security, the discussion moves beyond headline unemployment figures to interrogate deeper...
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The Geopolitical Trade Tax: When Access Becomes the Risk | CARICOM Conundrum
Global conflict is no longer just influencing prices—it is beginning to reshape access. In this episode of the Caribbean Business Review, Thomas Samuel, Economist and Trade Advisor at the Ministry of Commerce in Saint Lucia, examines how rising insurance premiums, shipping disruptions, and...
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Caribbean Energy Illusion: Resilience or Structural Exposure?
The Caribbean may appear insulated from global energy disruptions, but that perception is increasingly misleading.In reality, the region remains structurally exposed—not through supply shortages, but through the way energy is priced, transported, and absorbed across small, import-dependent...
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The Gulf Crisis Explained: How Insurance Shut Down Global Trade.
Global trade is no longer being disrupted solely by physical conflict. It is increasingly being reshaped by financial systems—and the Caribbean is already feeling the impact. In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, we examine how the Gulf Crisis, rising oil prices, and the repricing of…
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The New Global Energy Shock and Its Caribbean Implications
In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, host Joseph Cox examines how the latest global energy shock could reshape the economic outlook for Caribbean economies. Joseph is joined by Richard Rambarran, Guyanese economist and Managing Director of Ascension Business Services, and Cherri-Ann...
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Caribbean Business Stress-Test | Andrea Livingston-Prince
In Episode 8 of Season 3 of the Caribbean Business Review, host Joseph Cox sits down with Andrea Livingston-Prince, Chief Project Manager at Business Works Collective and Regional Private Sector Expert, for a wide-ranging conversation on the evolving business climate in the Caribbean. As global...
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Is Caribbean media collapsing — or transforming under structural pressure?
In Episode 7 of Season 3 of the Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Wesley Gibbings, veteran Caribbean journalist and Vice President of the Media Institute of the Caribbean, about the future of journalism in a digital, platform-dominated era. As advertising revenues fragment,...
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Power, Privacy & Cybercrime: Jamaica’s 2026 Amendment
Cybersecurity is no longer a technical issue. It is a governance issue, a national resilience issue, and increasingly, a question of institutional balance. In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox sits down with Dr. the Hon. Andrew Wheatley, Minister of Science, Technology &…
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Guyana’s Oil-Driven Growth: Institutions, Inflation & the Test of Development | Lyndell Danzie-Black
In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox is joined by Lyndell Danzie-Black for a focused discussion on Guyana’s oil-driven economic growth and its implications for governance, inflation, and development outcomes. As Guyana emerges as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies…
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Are Caribbean Organizations Built to Fail? Leadership, Culture & the Execution Gap | Nerissa Persaud
Why do so many Caribbean organisations struggle to execute strategy — even when funding, policies, and systems are in place? In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, host Joseph Cox is joined by Nerissa Persaud, Global Leadership and Culture Strategist and Executive Director of Ignite the...
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Growth Without Prosperity – Who Really Benefits?
Is the Caribbean truly recovering — or simply rebounding without improving lives? In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, host Joseph Cox is joined by Therese Turner-Jones, former General Manager of the Caribbean Country Department at the Inter-American Development Bank, for a frank and...
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The Caribbean’s Strategic Reset: Power, Sovereignty & Survival in a Post-Trump Era
In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, host Joseph Cox sits down with Hon. Mark Brantley, Premier of Nevis and leader of the Opposition in St. Kitts and Nevis, for a wide-ranging strategic conversation on the Caribbean’s position in a rapidly shifting global order. As the United States…
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Leo “Titus” Preville | Caribbean CBI at a Crossroads: Revenue, Visas & Fiscal Stability
In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, host Joseph Cox is joined by Leo “Titus” Preville, former Director of the CARICOM Single Market and senior OECS advocate, for a data-driven examination of the future of Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programmes in the Caribbean. As the United States...
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Financial Inclusion in the Caribbean: Who Is Still Locked Out?
In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, host Joseph Cox examines the structural economic signals reshaping the Caribbean at a critical inflection point. We begin with a CBR Briefing on What the Caribbean’s EV Divide Really Tells Us — not as a technology story, but as a window into deeper...
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Caribbean Telecoms at Risk: 2G/3G Shutdowns, 5G Gaps & Rising Costs
Caribbean telecoms are at a breaking point. As 2G and 3G networks shut down and 5G investment lags, rising costs, weak regulation, and climate risks are reshaping the region’s digital future.In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, host Joseph Cox is joined by Dr Delreo Newman, Chairman of...
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Reconstruction After Melissa: Lilia Burunciuc on Jamaica’s Economic Reset, Risks and the Road Ahead
A defining moment for Jamaica after Hurricane Melissa. Lilia Burunciuc joins CBR to unpack resilience, recovery, and reform.In this Special Edition of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox revisits a pivotal conversation with Lilia Burunciuc, World Bank Country Director for the Caribbean — a...
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Is the Caribbean Ready for AI?
In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Deodat Maharaj, Managing Director ofthe UN Technology Bank for Least Developed Countries, on the Caribbean’s readiness for artificial intelligence and the structural reforms needed to compete in a rapidly changing global…
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Rebuilding Jamaica’s Power Grid After Hurricane Melissa
In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox sits down with Dr. Devon Gardner, Senior Partner at the Institute for Innovation and Growth (IIG), for a comprehensive look at what it will take to rebuild — and future-proof — Jamaica’s electricity grid after the catastrophic impact of...
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Price Gouging in Jamaica: Remedy or Fallacy?
In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox examines one of Jamaica’s most contentious post-disaster debates — price gouging and consumer protection in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa. Joined by Latoya Halstead, Director of Communications at the Consumer Affairs Commission, the...
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Tourism Recovery in Jamaica after Hurricane Melissa | Prof. Lloyd Waller
In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Professor Lloyd Waller, Executive Director of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC), about Jamaica’s tourism recovery in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa — and what itreveals about the Caribbean’s...
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Navigating Vision 2030 Jamaica — Ambition or Illusion? | CBR Briefing: Post-Hurricane Recovery
Peisha Bryan-Lee on Vision 2030 Jamaica, plus a CBR Briefing on fiscal recovery after Hurricane Melissa. In this special post-storm edition of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox examines Jamaica’s recovery in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa, exploring how fiscal buffers, catastrophe…
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The Caribbean Real Estate Boom: Growth, Governance & Affordability (w/ Keody Thompson)
Keody Thompson joins Joseph Cox to unpack the Caribbeanreal-estate boom, affordability, and governance. In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Keody Thompson, Global Realtor at JamaicaSotheby’s International Realty, about the Caribbean’s fast-evolving real-estate...
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Holding the Line: The Caribbean’s Climate Reckoning with Dr. James Fletcher
The Caribbean’s climate reckoning: Dr. James Fletcher onresilience, loss & global accountability. In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, JosephCox sits down with Dr. James Fletcher, former Minister forSustainable Development of Saint Lucia and one of the Caribbean’s leading climate...
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Unlocking Caribbean Infrastructure: Mobilizing Growth and Resilience
How can private investment transform the Caribbean economy? IFC’s Michele Ottey joins Joseph Cox to explore infrastructure, MSMEs, climate finance, and the policy reforms needed to drive regional resilience. In this episode of Caribbean Business Review, Joseph Cox speaks with Michele Ottey,...
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Insurance in Crisis: Orville Johnson on Fixing the Caribbean’s Coverage Gap
Insurance consultant Orville Johnson joins Joseph Coxto examine why over 80% of Caribbean homes remain uninsured, how natural disasters and affordability drive the gap, and why consumer trust lags behind the banking sector. Plus, the CBR Briefing explores Jamaica’s stake in Caribbean Airlines —...
About this show
Caribbean Business Review is the Caribbean's leading weekly business and applied economics programme.Hosted by Applied Economist Joseph Cox, Caribbean Business Review features policymakers, CEOs, investors and regional leaders examining the forces shaping Caribbean economies, financial markets, trade, innovation, technology and public policy.New episodes premiere every Sunday. Available on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and wherever you get your podcasts.
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Joseph Cox
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