Just how vulnerable much of the Caribbean remains to economies that continue to be heavily dependent on tourism is reflected in a recent report published by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) which puts the financial cost of the still rampaging Covid-19 virus at a staggering US$33.9 billion.
The WTTC’s annual Economic Impact Report (EIR) states that travel and tourism’s contribution to the Caribbean’s gross domestic product plummeted from $58.4 billion (14.1 percent) in 2019 to $24.5 billion in 2020, a staggering 58%, far exceeding the global average, the report said.