The problem in context

Telecommunications liberalization is a deliberate process in Barbados that offers insight into how economies participate in the World Trade Organization (WTO) and handle the global market. This case study will examine telecommunications liberalization in Barbados as a reflection of its participation in the multilateral trading system and as a response to consumer and market demand. The study will demonstrate how Barbados chose to use WTO instruments domestically and through the establishment of an independent regulator. The case will describe the catalysts for telecommunications regulatory reform, the roles of primary stakeholders, and their key decisions. The challenges and results of liberalization will be highlighted, and stakeholders will recommend improvements to the process.

Barbados is a small island state in the Caribbean heavily dependent on international trade in services. Tourism and financial services represent the majority of services exports and the main source of foreign exchange. Barbados is a hub for firms operating in the Caribbean due to the island's airlift capability and comparatively well developed transportation and communication links. Sugar, rum and crude petroleum are significant export products. Their dependence on government support and diminishing preferential trading arrangements has shifted production ‘towards niche markets of higher-priced “luxury items” … cut flowers, speciality sugar, as well as research and development of special varieties and specialised rums’, according to economist Sherryl Burke Marshall. International trade in services is the mainstay of the economy, providing consistent, annual export revenues. Barbados undertook telecommunications reform in recognition of the fundamental importance of telecommunications infrastructure to international trade in services.