In small island developing states where regional programs dominate, the Eastern Caribbean portfolio tests whether regional designs translate into national results.

Covering 1992–2011, the assessment reviews 42 national projects and 17 regional projects with $12.32 million in funding and $10 million in cofinancing, plus 57 Small Grants Programme projects totaling $1.6 million, using portfolio analysis and country interviews and field visits.

Regional projects fit shared challenges but too often lack tangible national activities, which limits replication and scale. Climate change adaptation efforts stand out for enduring institutions, including the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre, and for policy uptake, while achievements in biodiversity, land degradation, and pollution management are fragmented and not always sustained.

Efficiency is constrained by weak capacity, lengthy approval times, and uneven coordination across the partnership; cofinancing has risen, yet impact monitoring remains thin.

The report recommends participatory regional designs with on-the-ground national activities; strategic use of System for Transparent Allocation of Resources funds to expand well-scoped national projects; and stronger capacity, coordination, and monitoring to improve sustainability and scale.