Cayman Islands: Economy

International finance and tourism are considered the Cayman Islands' "twin pillars" of economic development. It is estimated that financial services represent 40% and tourism between 30%-40% of gross domestic product.

The Cayman Islands economy suffered the effects of the 2009 global recession, which severely damaged the territory’s financial sector. The government has sought new ways of retaining international businesses and their employees; in February 2010, Premier McKeeva Bush announced that the government would offer foreigners the opportunity to purchase permanent residency in the Cayman Islands for $1 million. Tourism to the Cayman Islands also took a hit due to the global recession, falling in 2009. Tourism numbers increased in 2010, but they remained slightly below those of 2008. Although Caymanians enjoy one of the highest standards of living in the world, about 90% of the islands' food and consumer goods must be imported.

From the earliest settlement of the Cayman Islands, economic activity was hindered by isolation and a limited natural resource base. The harvesting of sea turtles to resupply passing sailing ships was the first major economic activity on the islands, but local stocks were depleted by the 1790s. Agriculture, while sufficient to support the small early settler population, has always been limited by the scarcity of available land.

The advent of modern transportation and telecommunications in the 1950s led to the emergence of international finance and tourism in the Cayman Islands. In 2004, there were more than 70,000 companies registered in the Cayman Islands, including 446 banks and trust companies. Forty of the world's largest banks are present in the Cayman Islands. Unspoiled beaches, duty-free shopping, scuba diving, and deep-sea fishing draw almost a million visitors to the islands each year.

Education is compulsory to the age of 16 and is free to all Caymanian children. Schools follow the British educational system. The government operates 10 primary, one special education, and two high schools. In addition, there is a university and a law school.

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