Sixty Years of Independence: Achievements, Challenges and the Road Ahead for Trinidad and Tobago

All countries aim to achieve high
rates of economic growth; many strive to improve living standards and quality
of life for their people. However, in a world where events and circumstances
often influence a country and its economy, these factors are not always fully
within the control of those responsible for leadership and development.

Sixty
Years of Independence examines Trinidad and Tobago’s
progress since independence in 1962, against such strivings and challenges,
with the aim of identifying both genuine achievements and persistent flaws or
gaps. The contributors to this volume share common assumptions that it is
essential to broaden and deepen democracy; that it is desirable to achieve
shared prosperity through higher levels of productivity and more meaningful
levels of economic development; and that the drivers of economic progress, as
well as the active build out of social infrastructure to support human
development, are both essential for genuine and sustainable developmental
progress.

These reflections on Trinidad and
Tobago’s sixty-year journey as an independent, sovereign nation are well worth
reading not only for the information they provide, nor solely for the
historical context they offer across various sectors, or even for the fact that
the contributors are individuals who have both shaped and reflected on national
development. This book is worth reading because each chapter presents
thoughtful, substantive insights that encourage readers to examine their own
perspectives on development, whether they live, and to consider how progress
might be pursued more effectively and meaningfully. For policymakers in
particular, this volume offers both inspiration and practical guidance on the
way forward.