Caribbean governments must modernise border systems, reduce port and travel costs, and improve real-time data sharing to protect regional trade and economies from increasingly permanent global disruptions, speakers at a Central Bank of Barbados seminar have warned.

Outdated border regulations, cumbersome customs procedures and persistent data silos are stifling intra-regional trade and leaving domestic economies vulnerable to global trade shocks, said Ryan Forde, chief executive of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association.

Executive Director, Barbados Manufacturers Association, Shardae Boyce speaking with moderator Nkenge Lawrence, Assistant Advisor to the Governor of the Central Bank during a panel discussion at the 46th Central Bank Annual Review at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Center (Photo credit: Ricardo Roberts / Barbados TODAY)