The Eighth Meeting of the Council for Human and Social Development (COHSOD) of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) was held in Paramaribo, Suriname on 24-25 April 2003, with an Opening Ceremony on the afternoon of 24 April 2003.
Ministers in attendance were: the Hon. Marcial Mes, Minister of Human Development, Local Government and Labour, Belize; the Hon. Maxine Henry-Wilson, Minister of Information, Culture, Youth and Sports, Jamaica; the Hon. Jacinth Henry-Martin, Minister of Culture, St. Kitts and Nevis; the Hon. Selmon Walters, Minister of Social Development, St. Vincent and the Grenadines; the Hon. Walter Sandriman, Minister of Education and Community Development, Suriname; and the Hon. Edward Hart, Minister of State in the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Trinidad and Tobago.
Barbados, Dominica, Guyana, Montserrat and Saint Lucia were represented.
The British Virgin Islands was also represented.
OPENING CEREMONY
The Opening Ceremony was chaired by Dr. Edward Greene, Assistant Secretary-General, Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat, who welcomed Delegates to the Meeting. In his Remarks, the Assistant Secretary-General adverted to the many challenges facing the Region and to the CARICOM imperative of establishing a Single Market and Economy to both meet the challenges of the constantly evolving global environment and securing a viable future for the people of the Caribbean Community. He also adverted to the opportunities provided by the upcoming CARIFESTA, to be held in Paramaribo in August 2003, for reaffirming the cultural and historic ties shared by the people of the Region.
The Hon. Walter Sandriman, Minister of Education and Community Development, Suriname and Chairman of the COHSOD, in his address to the Meeting, expressed his pleasure in welcoming Delegates to the Meeting and to Suriname and looked forward to a successful Eighth Meeting of the COHSOD. He asserted that economic integration could neither be attained nor sustained without emphasis on the inclusion of people in the process of economic and political development. In this context the COHSOD, with its theme – Investing in Human Resources with Equity, played a vital role by addressing the human condition and “placing people at the center of its development strategies.”He referred to the importance attached by the President and the Government of Suriname to the COHSOD, and underlined the link between youth and sport and the various successes of regional athletes in international games.
He also noted that some of the priority issues demanding urgent attention in the Region, including poverty reduction; the rights of children; special programmes for the empowerment of youth; reducing gender inequalities; and prevention, care and treatment strategies for the HIV/AIDS pandemic, were also included in the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDG).
With reference to culture, the Chairman of the COHSOD posited that it was an essential feature of human development and noted the work being undertaken by the Region to build on, preserve and market its cultural property. Particular mention was made of the arrangements being put in place by Suriname to host a successful CARIFESTA VIII in August 2003.
The Hon. Marie Levens, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Suriname also welcomed Delegates to Suriname and expressed the hope that, notwithstanding the packed agenda, they would take the opportunity to see the city of Paramaribo and the beautiful interior of Suriname.
ISSUES FROM THE SEVENTH MEETING OF THE COHSOD
The COHSOD received a report on the status of implementation of decisions and recommendations emanating from its Seventh Meeting. This included implementation of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), the Regional Action Plan for the Rights of the Child, the Civil Society Task Force and the Regional Drugs and Crime Control Programmes. Delegates noted with satisfaction the progress made in respect of the issues identified and pledged their support in the execution of these activities at the national and regional levels.
CARICOM Single Market and Economy
In the context of the CSME, With respect to the free intra-regional movement of skills, the COHSOD recommended that the impact of free movement on the social sector in Member States be examined in the appropriate regional fora and that continued efforts be made to ensure that Member States complete the procedures for the facilitation of travel in the Region by the 30 June 2003 established by the Conference of Heads of Government at its Fourteenth Inter-Sessional Meeting in February 2003.
Civil Society Task Force
The COHSOD accepted the proposal made by the Civil Society Task Force that a CARICOM Civil Society Council, comprising representatives of national Civil Society networks and regional institutions, should be established.
Regional Framework for Action on Children’s Issues
The COHSOD approved the Regional Framework for Action on Children’s Issues and identified specific targets for attention in 2003-2006. These include the quality of services in the area of early childhood education and development; legislative reform and the strengthening of social services interventions to address abuse and violence against children, child labour and differently-able children; and a reduction in the prevalence of malnutrition, infant and maternal mortality and mother-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS.
CULTURE AND DEVELOPMENT
The COHSOD noted the importance of cultural products to the economic development of the Region and agreed that in the current regional and global economic situation, sustained efforts should be made to maximise the output of cultural products in a way that would ensure optimal benefit to the Region and to its stakeholders. It was also agreed that artists should be centrally involved in the planning, development and implementation of cultural expositions.
CARIFESTA VIII
It was recognised that CARIFESTA VIII offered an excellent opportunity for the Region not only to showcase its creative talents, but also to demonstrate the economic value of its cultural products.
Policy Round Table on Culture
The COHSOD agreed that a comprehensive regional programme to support cultural industries in the Caribbean, inter alia, should be discussed at the proposed Policy Round Table on Culture, which was being convened to make recommendations on policy options for carrying forward activities relating to cultural products, copyright issues and the economic benefits derived from cultural products.>
Visit of UNESCO Director-General
The COHSOD noted that Mr. Koichiro Matsuro, Director-General of the United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) would be visiting Guyana, Jamaica and Suriname in the near future and would take this opportunity to visit the CARICOM Secretariat. The COHSOD also noted that UNESCO had adopted the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity in November 2001.
HUMAN AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
Caribbean Youth Development
The COHSOD received the Report of the World Bank Study on Caribbean Youth Development: Issues and Policy Directions and noted that the role of the World Bank in the youth sector had been refined in consultation with regional stakeholders, including the CARICOM Secretariat and the Commonwealth Youth Programme. The COHSOD requested the CARICOM Secretariat to follow up with the World Bank on the recommendations of the Study with the objective of operationalising the recommendations made.
Development through Sport
In respect of the Report of the Regional Survey of Development through Sport Programmes which sought to: identify administrative best practices observed across the Region; sensitise people to the powerful role which sports can play in the lives of the most vulnerable; and develop a model for the design and implementation of sports programmes, the COHSOD adopted the model tabled for its consideration and agreed to the integration of sport and health, youth, community development and other sectors and in particular, the twinning of sport and academic achievement.
Having considered the need for public awareness of the benefits of sport, the COHSOD accepted with gratitude the offer of the University of the West Indies (UWI) to collaborate with the Commonwealth Sports Development Programme (CSDP) to explore ways in which youth development could be achieved through sport programmes. The COHSOD welcomed the stated commitment of the UWI and CSDP to assist in mapping out strategies for the development of sport in the Region. It also requested the CSDP to take the lead role in programmes utilising sport as a developmental tool.
Sustainable Youth Development
The COHSOD also received a Report on the Assessment of the Capacity of CARICOM Member States to deliver Sustainable Youth Development Programmes and Services. It recognised the importance of the survey to advocacy, planning and programme development and called for immediate action to build the human resource capacity in Departments of Youth Affairs, including increased capacity to conduct research and to create and expand their databases. The COHSOD also called for greater collaboration between the CARICOM Secretariat and the Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP) since they were engaged in similar activities in the area of youth development in the Region.
CARICOM Youth Ambassadors Programme
Having received an update on the CARICOM Youth Ambassadors Programme, the COHSOD congratulated the CARICOM Youth Ambassadors of Suriname for an excellent national programme, which it deemed a model of best practice in the Region. The COHSOD expressed appreciation to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) for its offer to support the publication of the CARICOM Youth Ambassadors Newsletter.
Inter-Agency report on Youth
In respect of the Inter-Agency Report on Youth, the COHSOD expressed concern about the issue of male under-participation/ under-performance and called for the dissemination of models of best practice in strengthening youth development programmes.
SPECIAL ISSUES CONSIDERED BY THE COHSOD
Proposal for a Caribbean Accreditation Authority for Medical Education (CAAME)
The COHSOD endorsed the proposal of the University of the West Indies for the establishment of a Caribbean Accreditation Authority for Medical Education (CAAME) and other Health Professions as a matter of urgency.
Pan-Caribbean Partnership against HIV/AIDS
Having received an update on the Pan-Caribbean Partnership Against HIV/AIDS (PANCAP), the COHSOD commended the CARICOM Secretariat on the initiatives undertaken under the umbrella of PANCAP in the fight against the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The COHSOD expressed appreciation to the donor community and in particular, the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the European Union (EU), United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) for their contribution to the Region’s struggle against this scourge.
CARIFORUM report on Cultural Activities
The COHSOD noted that the Caribbean Forum of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (CARIFORUM) Cultural Centres in Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and the Dominican Republic had completed two years of operations and that the CARIFORUM Foundation for Culture and the Arts had been established with support from the European Union and the Ford Foundation.
The CARICOM Secretariat was urged to explore with Member States and other Members of CARIFORUM the possibility of a complementary CARICOM fund to support cultural activity, particularly those related to human resource development, cultural products, culture and trade and intellectual property.
DISTINGUISHED LECTURE
A Special Session of the COHSOD was convened for the third in the Distinguished Lecture Series which forms part of the celebrations marking the Thirtieth Anniversary of the Caribbean Community. The Hon. Maxine Henry-Wilson, Minister of Education, Youth and Culture of Jamaica addressed Delegates, the diplomatic corps and a cross section of Surinamese society on Culture in the Future of the Caribbean Community.
DATE AND VENUE OF NEXT MEETING
The COHSOD proposed that its Ninth Meeting be convened during October 2003 in Trinidad and Tobago. This meeting would focus on the theme, Investing in Human Resources with Special Reference to Labour.
APPRECIATION
Delegates expressed their gratitude to the Chairman for his guidance of the Meeting and to the Government and People of Suriname for the excellent arrangements which had been put in place and the warm hospitality extended to them during their brief stay in Suriname.
