The Experts Forum addressed a number of issues, namely, education, health and gender, security as well as physical infrastructure, all of which are considered critical to the achievement of international competitiveness and the construction of what Prime Minister Gonsalves has called “a genuine post-colonial economy”.

In this presentation I will try to identify the main issues which arose during the course of the discussion and also highlight the recommendations which were advanced as a basis for further action. Of course, it is important to note that these issues cannot be addressed in a vacuum, but must be seen in the context of the evolution of Caribbean society at this particular historical juncture as it seeks to engage in a fundamental reclamation of its economic destiny. This will require not only the transformation of national economies but also an intensification of the process of regional integration as a strategy for optimising its development possibilities.

As Prime Minister Owen Arthur has reminded us, this will involve not only increase macro-economic coordination and capital market integration, but also, an integrated pattern of production in the Region aimed at rationalising the use of its resource endowments and capabilities. In addition, it will involve the formulation of an overarching development strategy to guide the implementation of the CSME. All of these initiatives are designed to expand and diversify the trade and production structures of the region as it seeks to engage with the US, Europe and other potential trading partners in the context of the fundamental geopolitical changes taking place within the international system. The achievement of these objectives will also require the rationalisation of the governance structures of the Community as a prerequisite for achieving the economic objectives of the integration movement.

In examining the specific themes addressed by the forum, there was a basic recognition that education plays a critical role in the development process. A number of studies carried out by the World Bank and other institutions have identified intellectual capital as a critical input in the development process. This has become even more critical in the context of the emergence of a “knowledge society” or, as some would prefer to say, a “learning society” based on the more dynamic concept of continuous learning.

In recognition of the critical nexus between science and technology and development some policy makers have begun to advocate the construction of a techno-economic paradigm as a basis for ensuring that science and technology play a critical role in the development process and that they are in turn shaped by imperatives of economic planning.

The Caribbean will therefore clearly need to give priority attention to education if it is to develop its capacity to compete in the global economic system. It was recognised however that while the region had made important strides in education it continues to face a number of challenges based on the achievement of less than optimal literacy and numeracy skills at the primary and secondary levels in a number of countries. There was also a mismatch between the output of the education system and labour market demands. Similarly, there is an urgent need to upgrade teacher education and to introduce improved teaching methodologies. Finally, urgent action is required to correct the gender imbalance in terms of output at the tertiary level based on the predominance of female graduates at this level.

It was also recognised that tertiary level institutions face a major challenge in maintaining high quality education in the face of increasing demands for improved access to these institutions by a larger number of students. The liberalisation of education also presented a number of challenges for regional territory level institutions to compete effectively with overseas based tertiary level institutions many of which have begun to offer courses in various countries in the Region.

During the course of the discussion it was proposed by one participant that perhaps consideration should in future be given to the funding of individual students at the tertiary level rather than the funding of tertiary level institutions. However, the counter argument to this proposal is that all societies need to invest in the development of an indigenous institutional capacity as a necessary foundation for the development of a national, or as in the case of the Caribbean, a regional intellectual culture. Moreover, the significant differential between national/regional tuition costs and those of tertiary level education at overseas universities imposes considerable limits on the capacity of Governments to fund training of a large number of students in universities outside the Region.

In order to respond to the challenges in the education sector, it was proposed that greater emphasis should be placed on research designed to establish the relevance and efficacy of current course offerings. Emphasis should also be placed on the transformation of curricula in order to meet labour market demands and to ensure that education contributes to the competitiveness of the economies of the Caribbean. It was felt that consideration should be given to the participation of regional institutions in international standard testing programmes and that priority should be given to the development of accountability systems at all levels of education.

In addition, it is important to ensure the development of shared responsibility for learning outcomes through meaningful partnership between the home, the school and the community. Emphasis was also placed on the institutionalisation of industry-driven, competency-based approaches to training and the need to address training in ICT issues at the tertiary level in order to develop critical skills for development.

In recent years there has been growing recognition that "the health of the Region is the wealth of the Region" as was reflected in the CARICOM Heads of Government Declaration of 2001, which led to the establishment of a Task Force on Health. It was recognised that the Caribbean continued to face a number of health challenges, including the increasing incidence of HIV/AIDS. The increased incidence of the disease has been fuelled in part by growth in “sex tourism.” Moreover, there is an increased incidence of the disease among women, particularly young women who in a male dominated society in which violence is often a feature of relationships, find themselves at a disadvantage in managing such relationships. It was felt therefore that women should seek greater political participation in order to effect policies designed to safeguard their interests.

However, despite the significant increase in health expenditures to cope with the HIV/AIDS crisis, as the Report has revealed non-communicable diseases such as obesity, diabetes and hypertension have become an even greater threat to the health and well-being of the Caribbean people. In an effort to deal with this problem a number of policy instruments have been identified including legislation aimed at improved food labelling, taxation, with special emphasis on the imposition of increased taxes on tobacco, and appropriate regulation designed to increase physical activity. Further action is contemplated in the proposed Summit of Heads of Government on Non-Communicable Diseases scheduled to be held in Trinidad and Tobago on 14 September 2007 in which special emphasis will be placed on issues such as the reduction in smoking and specific measures to reduce obesity through appropriate diet and increased physical activity.

In recent years, security concerns have emerged as a major challenge for the Caribbean which also threaten its global competitiveness. In the past much of this threat to the security of the Region has been due to criminal activity based on drug trafficking since the geographical location of the Caribbean makes it an ideal location for the transhipment of drugs and even human trafficking. However, in recent years, the Caribbean has also become susceptible to terrorist acts. Security in the Caribbean could therefore be seen as multi-dimensional phenomena. In recognition of its increased importance in the Region, security has been designated a fourth pillar of the Community along with foreign policy coordination, trade and economic development, and functional cooperation.

At the same time, although much of the terrorist activities to which the Caribbean is exposed emanates from external sources, overseas media have tended to characterise the Caribbean as a haven for terrorists. A concerted effort is therefore needed to counter this misconception. Moreover, there is a growing concern regarding the US policy of deportation of Caribbean-born citizens which poses a potential threat to security in the Region unless the incorporation of such deportees into Caribbean societies is managed effectively. It was felt therefore efforts would need to be made by the Region to persuade the US to provide increased resources in order to ensure that deportees are effectively integrated into society.

Apart from the impact of natural hazards such as hurricanes, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions in some countries, the Caribbean remains susceptible to a range of environmental factors, most notably climate change, and in particular the impact of global warming generated in large part by CO2 emissions. More importantly, the susceptibility of the Caribbean to hurricanes is likely to be accentuated by the phenomenon of climate change.

The Region will therefore need to mainstream climate change adaptation strategies into national development planning systems. It will also need to take advantage of the available mechanisms under the Kyoto Protocol to modernise its energy sector and in the process mitigate its comparatively negligible emission of green house gases. It should also seek to obtain the requisite resources from the International donor community and the global environment facility to support regional efforts aimed at capacity building for climate change adaptation and for the implementation of adaptation programmes. In addition, it should actively promote the inclusion of Caribbean countries in the Global Initiative on Forest and Climate and World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF).

Although intellectual capital is a critical component of development, an adequate physical infrastructure is equally important in improving the global competitiveness of Caribbean economies. A survey of the achievements of the Caribbean in this area indicates a mixed record. While the Region has achieved increased access to potable water and electricity there is continued inadequacy in some countries in respect of ports and airports. Moreover, the transportation infrastructure which is critical to the economic development of the Region and its overall global competitiveness requires further improvement, including the need for rationalisation of such infrastructure on a regional basis.

Increased attention has been given to the possibility of engaging the Private Sector in infrastructure investment. In particular, the World Bank Group, through its Infrastructure Advisory Support Services, has facilitated private sector participation in infrastructure development in a number of countries. However, given the critical importance of physical infrastructure, Governments of the Region will need to identify the most appropriate approach for the development of such infrastructure. A critical consideration in this context has been the need to establish an appropriate balance between the interests of governments and the private sector.

This summary of the discussions which took place in the Experts Forum illustrates the range of the challenges facing the Region as it seeks to accelerate the pace of its development and to improve its competitiveness in an effort to improve the economic and social well-being of its people. It is clear that given the small size of the Member States of the Caribbean Community, regional integration is an indispensable formula for optimising the development possibilities of the Region. However, as was recognised during the discussions that, given the nature of the challenges, the Region will need the continued support of its international partners, notably the United States, in achieving its development goals - hence, the historic significance of this dialogue.