Assessment on the fishery sector for the Eastern Caribbean. The small island nations of the Eastern Caribbean face problems of unemployment, inadequate nutrition, and economic imbalances which threaten their social and political stability. World Bank (1979) estimates indicate that the labor force in Latin America and the Caribbean is growing at a more rapid rate than in any other region, while unemployment continues to rise. Eastern Caribbean islands are net importers of food. Coupled with increasing costs of all imported foods, fish imports exacerbate chronic problems with balance of payments. Political stability is endangered, because government leaders (correctly or not) can readily be considered responsible for such circumstances and are expected to provide instant remedies which simply do not exist.