Country Profile

Barbados is the most easterly of the Caribbean islands. The main economic drivers of the economy are the provision of services mainly tourism, business, finance and general services, and light manufacturing. Off-shore finance and information services are also important activities. Agriculture contributed 1.6% of the GDP per capita and employed 10% of the population. The main agricultural products include sugar, cotton and vegetables.

Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) Strategic Plan 2018-2022

Barbados, similar to Jamaica, has been a regional pioneer with respect to livestock breed development but of note has been the resulting work re the Barbados Blackbelly Sheep. CARDI intends to augment this work by mapping the genetic characteristics of the Barbados Blackbelly sheep along with the characterization and evaluation of local feed resources. Further work with respect to breed development will be undertaken as necessitated especially as CARDI intends to streamline Barbados as the Centre of Excellence for Small Ruminants. Germplasm work in the commodity areas of hot pepper, cassava, sweet potato and coconuts will be undertaken with respect to increasing the availability and provision of clean planting material as a basis for underpinning increased production. Germplasm breeding programmes will be a function of the work programme 2018 – 2022 with an emphasis on hot pepper and the development hybrids. Further, work will continue in the determination of possible sources of viral infection, and the deployment of newer technologies to optimize production. Another area of highlight will be research work geared towards improving the shelf life of onions, which will require innovative and technological solutions which CARDI will seek to validation and transfer.

Download CARDI STRATEGIC PLAN 2018- 2022