Jamaica recorded the second highest inflation rate and the sixth lowest estimated growth rate among 33 regional nations in 2009, according to the recently published Annual Statistical Yearbook by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).

The island additionally trails the region trend data in regard to foreign direct investment (FDI), debt reduction and other data over eight years which worries former UN economist, Dr Clement Jackson.

“I strongly believe that the poor…economic outcomes reflect the low and declining ranking of Jamaica on the ethical, governance, human rights underpinnings of the society,” Dr Jackson told the Observer in a written response to queries. Jackson currently works at Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) and was the former head of the Planning Institute of Jamaica prior to working with the UN for over a decade.

ECLAC which is one of five regional commissions of the United Nations Economic and Social Council–estimates Jamaica to record three per cent economic decline which would trail the average growth rate recorded throughout the Caribbean and Latin America at negative 2.2 per cent and negative 1.8 per cent growth respectively.

Real GDP declined by 2.8 per cent during 2009, according to the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) data.

“The Jamaican economy showed no sign of recovery during the October to December 2009 period, encumbered by the global recession with a fall-off in external demand for Jamaican goods and services, and a deterioration of the fiscal deficit,” the PIOJ stated in releasing its estimates for the last quarter of 2009.

The rate of negative growth ranks Jamaica sixth from the bottom among 33 regional nations listed by ECLAC with Bolivia expected to record the highest GDP growth at 3.5 per cent followed by Suriname, Dominica Republic and Panama at 2.5 per cent each.

Jamaica in 2009 had the second highest inflation rate at 10.2 per cent (but estimated at 9.0 by the publication) among 22 Latin America and Caribbean nations with only Venezula higher, at 26.9 per cent. In 2008 Jamaica had the third highest inflation rate officially at 16.8 per cent with Venezuela at 31.9 per cent and Haiti at 17 per cent.

The annual statistics showed that Jamaica’s FDI inflows grew four times slower than growth throughout the Caribbean. Specifically, Foreign Direct Investment into Jamaica grew 30 per cent from $524.9 million in 2001 to $685 million in 2008 which was far below the Caribbean growth of 122 per cent from $1.8 billion to $4 billion over the same period.

Also Jamaica’s external debt grew twice as fast as the Caribbean as a whole and 16 times faster than Latin America over the period. Specifically, Jamaica’s public external debt grew from US$4.1 billion in 2001 to US$6.3 billion in 2008 up 53 per cent at the same time Caribbean and Latin America external debt grew 30 per cent and 3.3 per cent respectively. Over the period other countries increased external debt, El Salvador jumped from US$3.1 billion to US9.7 billion, Grenada from US$176 million to US$494 million, Belize from US$494.9 million to US$955.5 million, Chile from US$38.5 billion to $64.7 billion, Costa Rica from US$5.2 billion to US$9 billion and St Lucia from US$212 million to US$415 million. Contrastingly from 2001 to 2008, Guyana reduced its external debt from US$1.19 billion to US$833.7 million and Nicaragua dipped its external debt from US$6.3 billion to US$3.5 billion.

At the same time, Jamaica’s trade deficit worsened three times faster than the Caribbean region but slightly worse than Latin America. Specifically, Jamaica’s balance of goods and services worsened by nearly 100 per cent from negative US$2.3 billion in 2006 to negative US$4.37 billion in 2008, over the same period the Caribbean worsened its balance of trade by 34 per cent from $3.3 billion to US$2 billion in 2008 whilst Latin America worsened 83 per cent from US$78.8 billion to US$12.1 billion. Countries which saw their balance of goods and services decline by almost 100 per cent or more included Brazil, Belize, Dominica, Dominica Republic, Ecuador, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay each saw Chile, Haiti, Mexico, Uruguay and Peru.

Jamaica’s ranking in other reports have also declined, the country ranked 100 in the 2009 UN Human Development Index (HDI) versus 92 in 2006. Jamaica is third to last in the index among Caribbean countries led by Barbados ranked 37 globally versus 39 in 2006. Guyana and Haiti trail Jamaica at 114 and 149 respectively. The Doing Business 2010 report, a joint publication of the World Bank, International Finance Corporation and PricewaterhouseCoopers, ranked Jamaica one of the 10 most difficult countries in the world to pay taxes–174 out of 183 countries.