Turks and Caicos Islands: Doing business & staying in touch

Since salt mining went into decline in the mid-1960s, and finally ceased during the 1990s, the Turks and Caicos Islands have relied on tourism, fishing and offshore financial services for most of their income.

There is little agriculture, but the sizeable fishing industry is both a major contributor to the islands' food requirements, and a valuable export earner - particularly from the USA, which buys much of the catch. The only other notable industry is construction, which is largely geared towards improving tourism infrastructure.

In the mid-1980s, measures were introduced by the government to attract an offshore financial services industry, and these have met with reasonable success. Unfortunately, it brought laundered money and illicit capital fleeing from elsewhere. Under pressure from London and, more publicly, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the government introduced a tighter regulatory structure in an attempt to prevent fraud and money laundering.

Meanwhile, the government has refocused on tourism as the key to the islands' future economic well-being. The sector is now the main source of revenue, worth in excess of US$500 million to the islands' economy, contributing around 47% of the total GDP in 2011. Tourism is dominated by visitors from the USA who make up around two thirds of the total. Despite receipts from tourism and the financial service, some aid from the >UK is provided to assist in various areas, such as government administration, environmental protection, and to fund capital projects.