By: Staff Writer
October 27, 2026
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in their latest Caribbean Investment Report 2026 said that investment flows to the Caribbean continued to expand in 2025 but the expansion is uneven.
The report said that the investment expansion is only in selected economies and sectors.
Excluding offshore financial centres (OFCs), foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows to Caribbean economies reached $18 billion in 2025. “However, investment remained concentrated in a handful of economies. Guyana and the Dominican Republic accounted for approximately 85 per cent of inflows outside OFCs,” the report said.
For Guyana, investment remained closely linked to hydrocarbon development, whereas inflows to the Dominican Republic were distributed across a broader range of sectors, including tourism, logistics, energy, manufacturing and business services.
Suriname, by contrast, recorded a strong increase linked to resource-related investment.
“By contrast, inflows to other economies remained comparatively modest, while Trinidad and Tobago continued to record net divestment. Relative to the size of their economies, however, FDI is significant in several Caribbean countries, underscoring both its potential contribution and their exposure to fluctuations in the international investment landscape,” the report said.
The report continued: “Trinidad and Tobago, the Dominican Republic and Guyana accounted for more than 90 per cent of announced greenfield projects.
“International project finance also remained driven by a limited number of large transactions, with activity concentrated in renewable energy, transport and other infrastructure sectors.
“Across investment modes, regional outcomes continue to be shaped by relatively few projects and investors.
“At the same time, there are signs that the investment landscape is gradually broadening.
“Investors from developing economies increased their presence in 2025, with logistics, transport, renewable energy, digital services and selected manufacturing activities gaining prominence alongside tourism and extractive industries.
“Tourism remains a major pillar of investment across the region, but recent trends suggest opportunities for diversification into a wider range of activities.”