An Applied Economics Consultant and Advocate with a career spanning thirty (30) years, Joseph Cox is currently the Assistant Secretary-General, Economic Integration, Innovation and Development (EIID) at the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat in Georgetown, Guyana. A Jamaican national, he holds both a Bachelor and a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of the West Indies (UWI). 

Joseph Cox’s contribution to Regional Development has  included the recent authoring of a book entitled “The New Normal – A Post-COVID Primer for Business”; conceptualised and received the unanimous approval from the Council of Trade and Economic Development (COTED) of the Made in CARICOM initiative; development and successful execution through the Caribbean Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (CCREEE) of a Project Preparation Facility;  development and implementation of  a Regional Strategic Intervention Framework – dubbed the Programme of Technical Assistance to CARICOM Territories (PACT) – which boasts short, medium, and long-term intervention strategies designed to optimize economic impact in CARICOM Member States, coupled with a robust monitoring and evaluation system.  He also developed and received approval from the COTED for the strategy to re-open the Region’s economies during the COVID-19 pandemic and has authored several peer-reviewed periodic papers including “Utility of VAT Holidays”, developed in November 2020.  He also authors and publishes “CARICOM Business” – a weekly regional business newsletter which is circulated both regionally and internationally. Prior to his CARICOM Secretariat posting, Joseph Cox was the Managing Partner for the Centre for Growth and Development in Jamaica, doubled as the Executive Director, Growth Secretariat, at the Planning Institute of Jamaica, and provided oversight for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)/Government of Jamaica (GOJ) Competitiveness Enhancement Programme.  Mr. Cox’s contribution to Jamaica’s national development has manifested itself, in part, through the establishment of three (3) Financial Institutions and includes the preparation of the “Taxation for Growth Strategy for Jamaica”, “Municipal Finance Reform Strategy”, and an intervention strategy entitled “Towards a Modern Development Approvals Mechanism” which was to overhaul the construction permitting system in Jamaica. He was also engaged in advocacy of a myriad of social and economic policy issues.  In October 2014, Mr. Cox conceptualised and led a demand side access to finance intervention entitled the “Financial Information and Real-time Matchmaking (FIRM)” initiative, in which some J$1.9B (US$174.0m) in financing was obtained for the Jamaican business community.  Mr. Cox has also distinguished himself in the International Development Partner Community, having successfully completed diverse assignments for the IDB and World Bank.  He is also the recipient of the Prime Minister’s Medal of Appreciation for Service to Jamaica.