Caribbean Basin Initiative

The CBI is an inter-American program to increase economic aid and trade
preferences for 28 states of the Caribbean region. The Caribbean Basin
Economic Recovery Act of 1983 provided for 12 years of duty-free treatment
of most goods produced in the Caribbean region. The Initiative was
extended permanently (CBI II), by the Customs and Trade Act of August 1990.
The 23 countries which are currently eligible for CBI beneifts include
Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, the British Virgin
Islands, Costa Rica, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador,
Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Jamaica, Montserrat, the Netherlands
Antilles, Nicaragua, Panama, St. Christopher-Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent
and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago. The following countries may
be eligible for CBI benefits but have not formally requested designation:
Anguilla, Cayman Islands, Suriname, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.