International Tourism in the Caribbean. Its Contribution over the last 25 years: 1980 – 2005

Over many years international tourism has become a specialisation of the Caribbean region. The question as to whether the contribution from International Tourism Earnings has impacted on the incomes of the people of the Caribbean has evolved into both a theoretical and practical area of study. By structuring the concept of contribution around the notions of causality and elasticity, this article presents various summarised data which are applicable to the whole of the Caribbean and hence looks beyond the diversity that characterises the region. Econometrics of panel data supplies the framework for the observations that follow and the regressions that can be estimated therefrom provide information on the dynamic contribution of international tourism to the revenue of the region.