Washington DC: On Friday 16th March 2007, hundreds of nationals of Member States of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) met at the Armour J. Blackburn University Center at the Howard University Campus in Washington DC for the Conference on the Caribbean Vision 2020 Diaspora Dialogue. The event, which took the form of a Town Hall Meeting, was hosted by the CARICOM Caucus of Ambassadors in Washington DC. This is the first of nine Town Hall Meetings which will be held throughout the US as precursors to the Conference on the Caribbean, which is scheduled for June 19th – 21st, 2007.

The purpose of last Friday’s meeting was the creation of a forum for wide consultation with members of the Caribbean Diaspora on the upcoming Conference of the Caribbean. The audience, which comprised nationals of CARICOM Member States as well as representatives of several Caribbean interest groups and Caribbean students, embraced the opportunity to engage their fellow nationals as well as their Ambassadors on issues related to:

- The structure of the Conference on the Caribbean – A 2020 Vision - The challenges and opportunities for the development of Caribbean Diaspora Communities in the US. - The impact that Diaspora communities have had on the socio-economic development of the Caribbean Community. - Mechanisms for harnessing the skills, knowledge and professional networks of the Diaspora with a view to pursuing mutually beneficial investment opportunities in the region and overcoming the development challenges which are currently being faced by CARICOM nations. - The way forward for broadening the success of members of the Caribbean Diaspora who reside in the US.

The three-hour meeting also provided the CARICOM Caucus of Ambassadors with a forum for communicating with nationals on the roles that they could play in the success of the Conference on the Caribbean, the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) and other initiatives which are now critical to the development of CARICOM Member States. Presentations were delivered by His Excellency Ellsworth I. A. John – Ambassador of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Chair of the CARICOM Caucus of Ambassadors, His Excellency Denis G. Antoine – Dean of the CARICOM Caucus of Ambassadors and Ambassador of Grenada, His Excellency Michael I. King – Ambassador of Barbados and Ms. Fay Housty, Executive Director, Foreign and Community Relations Directorate of the CARICOM Secretariat.

According to His Excellency Denis G. Antoine – “The Caribbean is transforming around the common vision embodied in the creation of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy, functional cooperation, security, and coordination of international relations. There is an opportunity to build on the currently prevailing patterns of diaspora engagement to move to even more exciting possibilities. If this engagement is to have long term viability, it must be mutually beneficial.”

His Excellency Ellsworth I. A. John in describing the Conference indicated that the Conference on the Caribbean is the first time that policy makers, international financial institutions, the academic community, private and public sector leaders and people of the Caribbean and the United States will come together in one forum to examine the growth and development of the Caribbean Community from a regional perspective.

The Diaspora Dialogue is key to the success of the Conference which is structured to maximize interaction between members of the Caribbean Diaspora and the policy makers from both regions. Last Friday’s dialogue marked the beginning of the new direction of the Diaspora Movement – one which is centered on inclusion and greater consultation.

The next Conference on the Caribbean Diaspora Dialogue is scheduled for March 24th, 2007 in Boston. Additional information on the Conference can be found at www.conferenceonthecaribbean.org