Exploring the Socio-economic Impact of the World Trade Organization's (WTO's) Policies on the Windward Islands Banana Farmers

The purpose of this single case qualitative study was to assess and analyze the socioeconomic impact of the World Trade Organization's (WTO's) 2005 decision to remove preferential access from bananas exported from St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the other Windward Islands of Dominica, Grenada, and St. Lucia to the United Kingdom (UK) market. Social and economic factors such as income levels, employment opportunities, and impact on family structure were examined. The problem that was addressed in the study was the socio-economic impact on Windward Islands banana farmers as a result of a decline in banana trade, following a WTO decision to remove preferential access from Windward Islands bananas entering the United Kingdom (UK) market. Data for the study were gathered from in depth interviews with 20 stakeholders who were purposefully selected: six farmers who exported bananas to the UK before the WTO decision, six farmers who are still exporting bananas to the UK under the fair trade program, and eight policy makers based upon their involvement in policy development and implementation. Further qualitative data were derived from published reports of international organizations, governments of the Windward Islands, documents from the Windward Islands Banana Exporting Company (WIBDECO) and the Windward Islands Farmers' Association (WINFARM). The primary issues raised by the three target groups were decreasing numbers of registered banana growers following the imposition of Eurepgap quality standards, increasing operational costs particularly of production inputs, increasing rural unemployment, and increasing manifestation of psychological stress. The fundamental support of this study is based upon the major theories of comparative advantage, globalization, and dependency. Pattern matching was used to analyze the interview data and NVivo 10 software was utilized in the analysis. The study concluded that the 2005 WTO decision created socio-economic challenges for banana farmers. However, research reflects prospects for diversification around bananas through the creation of linkages with the tourism product. Future research should explore a new paradigm for socio-economic development in the Windward Islands from a monoculture to diversification around banana farming. Additionally, future investigation may be conducted on the economic impact of the 2005 WTO decision based on gender.