Country Profile

As mature democracies facing few structural impediments to strengthening their anti-corruption frameworks Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Guyana, Jamaica, St Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago each have substantial room for improvement in their attempts to counter corruption. Most of these countries have established legal and institutional anti-corruption frameworks of a global standard but perform below what can be expected in terms of actually getting to grips with corruption issues. Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Guyana, Jamaica, St Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago all face pressure from criminal organisations seeking to launder money or using the territories of these small states to facilitate illicit flows of drugs and people. These pressures come with heightened risks of state capture. Recent oil discoveries also increase the pressure on Guyana to undertake substantial improvements quickly.