PRESS RELEASE 
EMBARGO  
NOT FOR PUBLICATION, OR DISTRIBUTION BY NEWS AGENCIES UNTIL 
1400 GENEVA TIME ( 1200  GMT) 17 SEPTEMBER 2008  
 
PRESS/TPRB/303 
17 September 2008 
 
(08-4275) 
 
TRADE POLICY REVIEW: BARBADOS 
Open trade regime has helped economic and human development 
Barbados’ generally open trade and investment regime, and its close integration into the world 
economy has helped it maintain some of the highest per capita incomes and human development 
indicators among developing countries, according to a WTO Secretariat report on the trade policies and practices of Barbados. 
 
The report shows that Barbados’ non-tariff barriers are low but that the applied MFN tariff stands at a relatively high average of 16.2%. This creates an anti-export bias which Barbados has tried to 
offset through fiscal and other incentive programmes.  
 Rationalizing those programmes and continuing to take steps to enhance competition in the 
domestic market would shore up the position of Barbados’ mainstay sectors like tourism and 
financial services. It would also improve consumer welfare and provide greater flexibility in economic management.  
 
The WTO report, along with a policy statement by the Government of Barbados, will be the basis 
for the second TPR of Barbados by the Trad e Policy Review Body of the WTO on 17 and 19 
September 2008. 
 The following documents are available in MS Wo rd format on the WTO web-site. They can be 
downloaded at http://www.wto.org/english/ tratop_e/tpr_e/tp303_e.htm  
 
• Secretariat reports 
> Contents and summary observations  
> Economic environment  > Trade and investment regimes  
> Trade policies and practices by measure  
> Trade policies by sector  > Appendix tables  
• Report by Government of Barbados 
• Chairperson’s concluding remarks  
• Minutes of the meeting (available appr oximately six weeks after the meeting). PRESS/TPRB/303 
Page 2 of 2 
 
 
Note 
Trade Policy Reviews are an exercise, mandated in the WTO Agreement, in which member countries’ trade and related policies are examined and evaluated at regular intervals. Significant 
developments that may have an impact on the global trading system are also monitored. For each 
review, two documents are prepared: a policy stat ement by the government of the member under 
review, and a detailed report written independently by the WTO Secretariat. These two documents are then discussed by the WTO’s full membership in  the Trade Policy Review Body (TPRB). These 
documents and the proceedings of the TPRB’s meetings are published shortly afterwards.  
 Print copies of the TPR publications are available for sale from the WTO Secretariat, Centre William 
Rappard, 154 rue de Lausanne, 1211 Genève 21 and through the on-line bookshop at 
https://secure.vtx.ch/shop/boutiques/wto_index_boutique.html  or follow this path :  
www.wto.org >resources > publications > trade policy reviews  
 
The TPR publications are also available from our co-publisher Bernan Press , 4611-F Assembly Drive, Lanham, MD 20706-4391, United States 
Next reviews: 
Republic of Korea: 8 and 10 October 2008 
Norway: 22 and 24 October 2008 
Jordan: 10 and 12 November 2008 
 For a full list of previous trade policy reviews and the full programme of future reviews go to 
http://www.wto.org/english/trat op_e/tpr_e/tpr_ e.htm#reviews 
or follow this path : www.wto.org > trade topics > trade policy reviews  
 
 
END