Should the COVID 19 experience prompt the Caribbean to adopt supranationalism?

Abstract

The Caribbean region, like the global community, has been significantly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic over the last year with marked mortality and morbidity. The region has several vulnerabilities that affect and impair a robust health and social response to such an intricate problem. The presence of multiple small island states with heterogenous governance and healthcare systems makes the response to a global problem individualized and small scale. This increases the likelihood of larger nations and economies acquiring healthcare consumables such as Personal Protective Equipment, testing equipment and medication ahead of the region. Economically, with several of the island states being dependent on tourism, the downturn in global travel and restriction of movement puts significant strain on efforts to sustain and rebuild. The focal question of this paper is whether a supranational entity in the Caribbean would have mitigated against these threats better than individual states. This is assessed through the lens of healthcare systems and should lead academics to a discussion on whether this is feasible and worthwhile.

Keywords

• caribbean
• covid 19
• pandemic
• governance
• supranational