Economy
Coastal reefs offers significant economic benefits to the Caribbean economy. These include: Tourism-related benefits, fishery yields, and protection from coastal erosion.
Tourism is the Caribbean's most important economic sector. One in six Caribbean workers is employed directly in tourism. Tourism, including supporting and related services, contributes an estimation one-hundred and five billion dollars (USD$105,000,000,000) to the Caribbean economy annually.
| Visitor Expenditure as a Percentage of GDP | |
|---|---|
| Anguilla | 75% |
| Cayman Islands | 60% |
| St. Lucia |
55% |
| Antigua & Barbuda |
49% |
| Aruba |
41% |
| Barbados |
36% |
| St. Kitts & Nevis |
31% |
| Grenada |
28% |
| St. Vincent & Grenadines |
28% |
| Jamaica |
25% |
Overview of the Caribbean Tourism Sector: Managing Tourism Resources,
Mercedes Silva, Sustainable Tourism Specialist,
Adaptation to Climate Change in the Caribbean Tourism Sector Workshop,
Grenada, May 27th, 2002
In the year 2000, it was estimated that fisheries production in the Caribbean had a net economic value of three-hundred and twelve million dollars (USD$ 312,000,000) per year. It was also estimated that by 2015 the fisheries sector would decline in value by 95 - 139 million dollars, due to coral reef degradation.
Coastal ecosystems are important to the prevention of coastal erosion. Coral reefs dissipate wave and storm energy and create lagoons and sedimentary environments favourable for the growth of mangroves and seagrasses. Mangroves and seagrasses bind marine and terrestrial sediments, reducing coastal erosion and supporting clear waters favourable to corals. In the Caribbean, hurricanes and tropical storms are the major threats to coastal erosion. The value of the benefits of shoreline protection across the Caribbean region was estimated to be between US$740 million and US$2.2 billion per year.
