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2018 Annual Economic and Financial Review
SAINT LUCIA
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104
Eastern Caribbean Central Bank
Outlook
Notwithstanding the expectations for a
slowdown in global growth, prospects for
the economy of Saint Lucia for the near-
term remain positive.
The uptick is likely to
be led by a rebound in the construction sector,
with support from the tourism industry and a
few other productive sectors.
The
construction sector, one of the main drivers of
economic growth, is expected to rebound as
the implementation rate of planned projects
accelerates. Most of the impetus from that
sector will emanate from robust activity in the
private sector, driven by work on tourism-
related plants, including the Harbour Club
Hotel, the Coconut Bay Resort, the Sandals
Resort and a few other projects under the
Citizenship by Investment Programme. In
addition, support is anticipated from the public
sector through the Hewanorra International
Airport (HIA) project, rehabilitation and
maintenance of the road networks,
infrastructural development and a few private
residential buildings.
Another major contributor to the short-term
outlook is activity in the hotels and restaurants
sector. It is anticipated that the sector will
remain on its positive path, as airlift continues
to improve and the room stock increases. The
tourism authority seeks to boost its marketing
strategy to ensure that Saint Lucia
continuously receives positive international
reviews, which augur well for the
sustainability of the destination. The
projections are that stay-over arrivals will
keep driving tourism activity as a number of
airlines like JetBlue, Delta, British Airways,
Sun Wing, Virgin Atlantic and United Airlines
maintain their service to the island and in some
cases increase their presence at the HIA.
Additionally, the favourable growth
projections for the US and UK economies, the
main source markets, may contribute
positively to stay-over arrivals.
Regional visitors are likely to bolster the
tourism numbers through, inter alia,
continued collaboration between the French
West Indies and local communities in
Saint Lucia. The cruise sub-sector is also
expected to sustain its performance into 2019,
as the frequency and size of ships increase.
Positive developments in the tourism industry
will have spill-over effects on other ancillary
sectors, like wholesale and retail trade, and
transport, storage and communications.
Effective fiscal consolidation and debt
management policies remain key in the quest
towards sustainable growth and development.