ABSTRACT
Agriculture continues to be a critically important sector in the economies of countries of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in spite of its declining contributions to GDP. In the case of Jamaica, primary agriculture (agriculture, forestry and fishery) as a share of GDP has declined from 6.14 per cent in 1999-2003 to 4.83 per cent in 2010. Likewise, expanded agriculture (primary agriculture plus agro-processing) declined from 5.18 to 4.69 per cent over the same period (IICA 2010). In spite of declining contributions to GDP, agriculture continues to feature prominently in the livelihood profile of Caribbean states, particularly because it remains a major employer of labour and the pillar of domestic food production and, by extension, domestic food security for these states. In that context, direct employment in agriculture averages about 16.2 per cent of the labour force among CARICOM states (FAO 2014).
