ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the external forces and internal idiosyncracies in the context of dealing with women's participation in the economic and political life of the Caribbean. It suggests that women are rational subjects and actors in Caribbean economic and political life and thus have the inherent right to be part of any attempt to solve the problems affecting the region and develop their own capabilities. The chapter analyses women's participation in Caribbean economic and political processes in order to establish that, although the universe called Caribbean women is not homogeneous but fragmented according to cultural sub-regions, social classes, and even generational groups, its members share many notable similarities in the economic and political fields. It addresses several issues around which strategies could be developed by the Caribbean state, private sector, and women's organizations in order to maximize to the fullest extent the development and utilization of all human resources in the region as it prepares for the twenty-first century.
