IMF Office in Barbados

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Resident Representative for Barbados

Patrick Blagrave
Resident Representative

Office Information

2nd Floor Tom Adams Financial Centre, Central Bank of Barbados
Spry Street, Bridgetown
Email: WHDRR-BRB@imf.org
Tel: +1 (246) 537-2873

Barbados: At a Glance

• Current IMF membership: 191 countries
• Barbados joined the Fund on December 29, 1970
• Quota: SDR 94.5 million (0.02 percent of total)
• Number of arrangements since membership: 3
• Outstanding Purchases and Loans (SDR): 206 million (September 24, 2020)
• Latest Article IV/Country Report: December 18, 2019
• Current IMF arrangement: Latest Report: June 8, 2020

Office mandate and activities

• Opened in 2019 as a central point of contact between the IMF and the Government of Barbados.
• Primary focus: support implementation of Barbados’ Economic Reform and Transformation (BERT) priorities set forth in the Fund’s Extended Arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Barbados.
• Core functions:
  • Follow economic developments and policies in Barbados.
  • Liaise between Barbadian authorities and IMF staff in Washington.
  • Coordinate IMF technical assistance.
  • Serve as a source of IMF views for the public, analysts, investors, academic and research institutions, international partners, and diplomatic missions.

Resident representative and office staff

• Patrick Blagrave, Resident Representative
  • Most recently a Macroeconomics Advisor at the IMF’s Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Center (CARTAC) for three years.
  • Canadian national; began career at the Bank of Canada in 2006; moved to the IMF in 2010.
  • Research and publications on macroeconomic modeling, forecasting, risk analysis, inflation determinants, cross-country spillover analysis, and macroeconomic effects of structural reforms.
  • Contributed regularly to the World Economic Outlook at IMF Headquarters, co-authoring three analytical chapters.
  • Previously senior desk economist for the IMF’s India and Nepal country teams; led annual Article IV consultations and liaised on fiscal, real, and monetary-sector issues.
  • Education: First-Class Honors BA in Economics from Mount Allison University; Master’s Degree in Economics from Queen’s University.
• Laron Alleyne, Local Economist
  • Graduated with Upper Second Class Honours in Economics and Management at The University of the West Indies Cave Hill Campus.
  • Pursued Master of Science in Financial and Business Economics at the University of The West Indies Cave Hill Campus Graduate Studies and Research.
  • Currently pursuing a doctorate in Economics at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, focusing on tourism sustainability.
  • Nine years at the Research and Economic Analysis Department of the Central Bank of Barbados; promoted to Senior Economist.
  • Research includes optimal energy mix for Barbados; pass-through of international food and energy prices into domestic inflation; global competitive trends for Barbados; impact of real effective exchange rates on tourism demand; estimating the impact of climate change on agriculture production.
• Amy Carrington, Office Manager
  • Barbadian national; joined the IMF RRO for Barbados as Office Manager on its inauguration in August 2019.
  • Prior experience: 8 years providing assistance through Centers For Disease Control (CDC), Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in the Eastern Caribbean.
  • Served as Trafficking in Persons Coordinator for the agency.
  • Management graduate with experience in operations management, financial administration, procurement, and logistics.
  • Responsibilities: day-to-day management and operations of the RRO.
  • Education: Associate Degree in Tourism and Travel; BSc Hons in Management specializing in Tourism and Hospitality Management from the University of the West Indies.
• Willie Parris, Office Driver
  • Joined as Senior Driver on January13th 2020.
  • Performs official driver duties and assists with general administrative tasks under supervision of the Resident Representative and Office Manager.
  • Prior nearly three decades with the Organization of American States (OAS) as Office Driver/Messenger.
  • Trade: electrician; certification in Computer Repairs & Maintenance.

Outreach, events, and resources

• Outreach and Conferences:
  • 2019 Caribbean Forum (Barbados)
  • 2018 Caribbean Forum
  • 2017 Caribbean Forum
  • Past Caribbean Forums
• COVID-19 related resources and initiatives:
  • The IMF and COVID-19
  • How Can the Fund Help
  • The IMF’s Firepower
  • Policy Tracker by Country
  • Financial Assistance and Debt Service Relief
  • Special Series on COVID-19 Policy Options
  • Q&As
• Factsheets and explanatory resources:
  • IMF Factsheets
  • The IMF at a Glance
  • IMF Lending
  • Where the IMF Gets its Money
  • How the IMF Makes Decisions
  • IMF Surveillance
  • IMF Conditionality
  • IMF Extended Fund Facility (EFF)
  • Protecting IMF Resources – Safeguards Assessments
  • IMF Capacity Development

Regional outlook highlights (Western Hemisphere, October 2024)

• After successfully weathering a series of shocks, most countries in the region are converging to their (tepid) potential.
• Growth and inflation projections:
  • Growth is expected to moderate in late 2024 and 2025.
  • Inflation is projected to continue easing, although gradually.
• Policy priorities and recommendations:
  • With output and inflation gaps mostly closed but monetary policy still contractionary and public finances in need of strengthening, a further rebalancing of the policy mix is necessary.
  • Fiscal consolidation should advance without delay to rebuild buffers while protecting priority public investment and social spending.
  • Fiscal consolidation would support normalization of monetary policy and strengthen credibility and resilience of policy frameworks.
  • Most central banks are well placed to proceed with monetary easing, balancing the risk of reemerging price pressures and avoiding undue economic contraction.
• Medium-term challenges and reform priorities:
  • Medium-term growth expected to remain close to its low historical average, reflecting long-standing challenges: low investment and productivity growth, and shifting demographics.
  • Ongoing reform agenda is thin; failure to press on with reforms could lead to low growth, social discontent, and populist policies.
  • Priority reforms: improve governance (strengthen rule of law, enhance government effectiveness, tackle crime); boost capital accumulation (improve business environment, foster competition, increase international trade); increase and better target public investment; tackle informality and make formal labor markets more flexible; increase female labor participation to help boost the labor force and offset demographic shifts.

Selected publications referenced

• World Economic Outlook — Global Economy in Crosscurrents of War and Technology — July 8, 2026
• Global Financial Stability Report — Global Financial Markets Confront the War in the Middle East and Amplification Risks — April 14, 2026
• Fiscal Monitor — Fiscal Policy under Pressure: High Debt, Rising Risks — April 15, 2026
• Annual Report of the Executive Board — Getting to Growth in an Age of Uncertainty — September 24, 2025

IMF's Work on Barbados

• IMF's Work on Barbados

References

• 2019 Caribbean Forum (Barbados)
• 2018 Caribbean Forum
• 2017 Caribbean Forum
• The IMF and COVID-19
• How Can the Fund Help
• The IMF’s Firepower
• Policy Tracker by Country
• Financial Assistance and Debt Service Relief
• Special Series on COVID-19 Policy Options
• Q&As
• The IMF at a Glance
• IMF Lending
• Where the IMF Gets its Money
• How the IMF Makes Decisions
• IMF Surveillance
• IMF Conditionality
• IMF Extended Fund Facility (EFF)
• Protecting IMF Resources – Safeguards Assessments
• IMF Capacity Development
• More Factsheets
• World Economic Outlook
• Global Economy in Crosscurrents of War and Technology
• Global Financial Stability Report
• Global Financial Markets Confront the War in the Middle East and Amplification Risks
• Fiscal Monitor
• Fiscal Policy under Pressure: High Debt, Rising Risks
• Regional Economic Outlook Reports, All Regions
• Asia and Pacific
• Europe
• Middle East and Central Asia
• Sub-Saharan Africa
• Western Hemisphere
• IMF Annual Report 2025
• Getting to Growth in an Age of Uncertainty
• More Publications
• Barbados and IMF
• Latest Report
• October 2021 Regional Economic Outlook for Western Hemisphere - Cover