Wither the Agricultural Sector in the Caribbean? The

economies of Caribbean countries were initially based on production of export-oriented agriculture, sugar and subsequently bananas. Production of food for the domestic market was a secondary activity whose fortunes depended on local import regimes and the level of protection afforded domestic production. Development strategies pursued since the post-war II period were based first on import-substitution industrialization and subsequently on export orientation. The focus on manufacturing detracted from the pursuit of modernization and development of the agricultural sector. Export agriculture survived on the basis of preferential access to the European market. Trade liberalization from the latter part of the 29th century exposed the weakness of the industrialization strategy pursued by CARICOM countries. Imports continued to grow without concomitant growth in exports. However, agricultural exports grew until the decade of the nineties largely on account of the preferential access to export markets. Liberalization of some of the barriers to agricultural imports during the 1990s resulted in increased imports. Many countries in the region decreased their dependence on agricultural exports as minerals such as bauxite and petroleum products and services suc