ABSTRACT
The Caribbean is a major trans-shipment point for illegal drugs because of its acute vulnerabilities including its location between the drug-producing countries in South America and the consuming countries in North America and Europe. One study highlighted the immense impact of the drug trade on Caribbean countries and another found it was the primary factor in the region’s murder rate of 30 murders per 100,000 population, making the Caribbean region the most crime-prone and violent in the world. Additionally, while Jamaica has a longer history of gang violence, within the last decade gang violence has emerged as a significant problem for other countries in the region. Gang violence has been identified as one of the most significant factors in the countries with the highest murder rates in the region (Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Belize) and a growing problem in Guyana and other Caribbean countries. Research on the link between drug trafficking and gang violence in the Caribbean region is limited. This chapter builds on the existing knowledge and provides additional insights into the nexus between drug trafficking and gang violence in the Caribbean.
