(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) His Excellency Ambassador Irwin LaRocque told His Excellency Robert Morris, the new Barbados Ambassador to CARICOM that his vast experience in the labour movement would serve the Community well, “particularly as we strive to ensure that people remain at the centre of our integration movement.”
The Secretary-General further stated to Ambassador Morris that his credentials spoke for themselves and “we have no doubt that we will find in you a most able toiler in the field of integration.”
Speaking at the Ceremony for Ambassador Morris’s Presentation of Credentials on Tuesday at the CARICOM Secretariat’s Georgetown, Guyana headquarters, the Secretary-General said that CARICOM Member States are sold on the idea that they fared better together than as individual states in the face of numerous global challenges including climate change and global financial and economic crises.
“CARICOM Member States are committed to the integration project,” the Secretary-General affirmed. “There is no denying that when we speak as 15 voices united on a single position, we are that much more effective,” Ambassador LaRocque added.
The Secretary-General stated countries of the Community must counter the characteristics inherent in their very nature as small, open and vulnerable economies, as they seek to increase their productivity and meaningfully integrate in the global economy.
He said that the Community had spared no effort in addressing the “exogenous challenges” to economic growth and stability. In this regard, Ambassador LaRocque said that the Region had been leveraging its assets through the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) for driving sustainable economic development. These assets included “creative and educated people, competitive, and in some cases, world class services and goods; and its geographic position.
As the Caribbean Community moves to deepen economic integration, he told Ambassador Morris that CARICOM would require his country’s continuing guidance and leadership, as challenges toward that goal become “more formidable.”
Secretary-General pointed to the many contributions Barbados has been making to the integration project which range from steering the Community’s flagship programme, the CSME, and providing dynamic leadership at the hemispheric and international levels in environmental sustainability.
“Your country and its leaders have been champions of our common aspirations in respect of regional economic development through their stewardship over the establishment and operation of the CSME,” Ambassador LaRocque stated.
On the sustainable development front he said: “One cannot speak of Barbados’ role in this Region without making reference to its sterling contribution in the area of environmental issues, particularly with regards to championing the causes of Small Island Developing States – SIDS – as well as that of the Caribbean Sea. We cannot forget that it was in Barbados in 1994 that the first ever Conference for the sustainable development of small island states was held, resulting in the UN sponsored “Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States.”
Secretary-General LaRocque stated that Community was proud of the work of Honourable Freundel Stuart, Prime Minister of Barbados for representing the Region’s interests and concerns on the UN High Level Panel on Global Sustainability, which was tasked with responsibility for formulating a new blueprint for a sustainable future by exploring approaches for building a low-carbon, green and resilient economy that can eradicate poverty and ensure a dignified life for all. The report of that Panel was presented to the UN Secretary-General on Monday.
