The exclusion of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT+) community in the English-speaking Caribbean can cost up to US$4.2 billion, or 5.7 per cent of its collective GDP.
This was the major conclusion of a study called The Economic Case for LGBT+ Inclusion in the Caribbean, done by Open for Business, a coalition of global companies.
The report, which was launched on Wednesday, is the first of its kind in the Caribbean.
The data was collected from over 2,167 LGBT+ people in Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.
The report also encompasses data from interviews with 21 business leaders and employees and surveys of 1,430 prospective tourists.
The results of the report focus on not only economic loss but the brain drain and loss of productivity which results from LGBTI+ exclusion. It noted that where LGBT+ people were accepted, there was greater economic growth, increased labour productivity, fewer challenges in the school environment and less violence against LGBT+ people.
The post Major study: LGBTI+ exclusion can cost region up to US$4b appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.
