(Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) – The recently concluded Sixtieth (60th) Regular Meeting of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) marked significant progress in advancing measures for enhanced economic integration, competitiveness, and strategies for addressing bilateral and multilateral trade issues.
Key outcomes of the meeting included progress on the draft Regional Industrial Policy; agreements to move forward with the revisions to CARICOM’s main trading instruments, the Common External Tariff (CET) and Rules of Origin, and strategic responses to emerging international trade measures, particularly the impact of the U.S. “America First” policies.
In an interview, Assistant Secretary-General for the CARICOM Single Market and Trade, Ambassador Wayne McCook said that Ministers received a report on the draft Regional Industrial Policy, which lays the foundation for increased productivity, competitiveness, and deeper linkages of economic sectors among Member States.
“Ministers were quite interested in the proposals and recommendations that were beginning to take shape. What has been set out is a comprehensive policy that covers all the critical areas of regional industry,” Ambassador McCook stated.
This policy, led by the Directorate of Economic Integration, Innovation and Development, with the President of Suriname championing the initiative, is designed to streamline resources and enhance industrial capacity.
Expressing optimism that the draft policy “will be finalised very soon,” Ambassador McCook said that once in place, it will better position CARICOM to benefit from existing and future trade arrangements.
CARICOM’s CET and Rules of Origin Gaining Momentum
CARICOM’s efforts to make the CET and the Rules of Origin fit for purpose gained momentum as trade ministers agreed to begin work on implementing the revised CET regime from January 2026.
The CET is a standardised tariff rate that CARICOM applies to imports from outside the region, while CARICOM Rules of Origin indicate when a particular product made within the CARICOM Single Market, qualifies for duty-free treatment. At the meeting, trade ministers provided favourable consideration to specific requests by Member States for CET exemptions and adjustments.
Describing the Rules of Origin and CET as the “real engine of the Single Market and Trade in Goods regimes to promote and support intra-regional trade,” Ambassador McCook said that the updates better reflect the ways in which regional producers and manufacturers make and trade their goods.
He said that these reforms will coincide with the implementation of the Harmonised System Code that the World Customs Organisation will introduce for 2027. Customs agencies, trade ministers, and finance departments are gearing up for the significant administrative work required over the next year to ensure that both transitions are successful, the Assistant Secretary-General stated.
Review of Potential Impact of “America First” Trade Policy
In the realm of external trade, COTED received an update on ongoing work to assess the implications of the evolving U.S. trade stance under its “America First” policy. An Expert Working Group, drawn from the CARICOM Secretariat, CARICOM Private Sector Organisation, and the Caribbean Development Bank, is reviewing the potential impact of the tariff changes including the 10 % baseline tariff applied across the board on regional exports to the U.S.
“Pooling our resources, we expect to be able to deliver the best possible analysis and advice on the way forward in addressing these new tariffs and related measures. The U.S. remains the Region’s largest trading partner overall, so this work is significant,” said the Assistant Secretary-General.
He noted that the group is working with alacrity to present the findings before the 49th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM, which is scheduled from July 6-8 in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Preceding that meeting, the report will be tabled for the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee on External Trade Negotiations.
Additionally, trade ministers approved CARICOM’s negotiating strategy for upcoming bilateral trade talks with Colombia and reviewed the preparations for the 2026 Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
“We know that there are significant challenges that the WTO has to contend with, so Ministers looked at the landscape ahead and will be preparing to instruct our delegations to the Ministerial Conference in ways that will advance the Community’s interest in the multilateral trading system,” Ambassador McCook stated.
