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OP-ED– THE UWI FIVE ISLANDS CAMPUS OECS BUDGET WATCH 2025
“HOW THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN SPENDS: SALARIES, SCHOOLS, OR STEEL?”
By Professor C. Justin Robinson
Pro Vice-Chancellor and Principal, UWI Five Islands Campus
Every government budget reveals a nation’s priorities—and its pressures. So, how do Eastern Caribbean governments spend their billions? In 2025, the regional story is one of rising wage bills, record infrastructure budgets, and growing competition between social programs and concrete.
The Wage Bill: A Regional Tug-of-War
Paying public servants remains the single biggest line item in most budgets.
- Antigua and Barbuda spent 38% of its budget on salaries in 2024, including a 9% pay increase.
- St. Kitts and Nevis set aside EC$361.7 million for wages—33% of total expenditure.
- Saint Lucia keeps wages under 13% of GDP (in line with its fiscal rule), but that still means over EC$600 million annually—more than 30% of spending.
- Grenada and Dominica each devote around 25–30% of total spending to personnel.
While governments say they are investing in public services, the wage bill is also a political battlefield—especially in election years.
Capital Spending: The Infrastructure Arms Race
Infrastructure is the region’s new arms race—and the 2025 budgets are the battlefield.
| Country | Capital Spending (% of Total Budget) |
|---|---|
| St. Vincent & the Gren. | ~38% 🏗️ |
| Dominica | ~30% 🏗️ |
| Grenada | ~25% 🏗️ |
| Saint Lucia | ~16% |
| Antigua & Barbuda | ~17% |
| St. Kitts & Nevis | ~19% |
St. Vincent and the Grenadines leads the pack, with EC$700 million in capital projects, including the multi-year Kingstown Port Modernization. Dominica is not far behind, with heavy airport and geothermal plant investment. Meanwhile, Grenada’s hurricane recovery budget is surging in terms of capital spending. Even Antigua and Saint Lucia, more fiscally conservative, are still dedicating 1 in every 5 or 6 dollars to infrastructure.
Social Sectors: Still a Priority?
Despite the infrastructure push, education and health remain vital:
- Antigua allocates 14% of total spending to education and 11.5% to health.
- Saint Lucia spends about 12–15% on education and 10 %+ on health.
- Dominica maintains ~15% for education and ~10% for health, even with massive infrastructure bills.
- St. Kitts increased its education budget by over 20% in 2025, reaching EC$120 million.
Interest Payments: The Price of Past Spending
The most sobering item? Interest on debt.
- St. Vincent expects EC$358.2 million in debt service—nearly 40% of revenue.
- Dominica spends 2.5–3% of GDP on interest, close to 10% of total spending.
- Grenada and Antigua, by contrast, keep interest below 5% of their budgets, thanks to lower debt and concessional loans.
Takeaway:
The Eastern Caribbean is spending big on construction—roads, ports, airports, and hospitals.
But personnel costs are crowding budgets, especially where wage hikes or arrears are being settled.
And debt service is quietly growing, stealing resources from health and education in high-debt countries.
Prof. C. Justin Robinson, a Vincentian and UWI graduate, holds a BSc in Management Studies, MSc in Finance and Econometrics, and PhD in Finance. With over 20 years at UWI, he has served in various leadership roles, including Dean and Pro Vice Chancellor, Board for Undergraduate Studies. A Professor of Corporate Finance with extensive research publications, he is actively involved in regional financial institutions and is currently the Principal of The UWI Five Islands Campus in Antigua and Barbuda.
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Mi want see more money go into schools—not just concrete and contracts!
Dem need to fix teacher pay and classrooms before building more monuments.
Mi tired of all de infrastructure spending when civil servants barely getting raise!
“Mi want dem break it down properly. Who getting what and why?”
Why is data from SVG so patchy? 40% on interest payments? OMG!!!