It is a great pleasure for me, in- my capacity as Deputy Secretary General, to extend to all of you a warm welcome to the Twenty-Second Meeting of the Regional Cultural Committee. This is the Regional Body which has been advising our Ministers of Culture for the past 27 years on shaping national and regional cultural policy and programmes as well as on addressing critical matters on the regional culture agenda.
This is an important meeting because culture we know is high on the development agenda of CARICOM. Our Heads of Government at a special retreat held in May 2012 in Guyana, identified cultural and creative industries as one of the priority areas for job and wealth creation in our Region.
Our Ministers of Trade have also named cultural and sporting services as one of the 7 priority sectors for development in Services. There is therefore an increasing recognition by our Member States, of the tremendous value and developmental potential of the creative and cultural industries in a Region like ours that has produced so many outstanding artists and inspired the world with the quality and diversity of our cultural expressions.
This Meeting will review the implementation status of the Regional Development Strategy for the Cultural Industries in CARICOM and provide further advice on how we can further develop more vibrant, productive sectors in our countries.
Suriname, was host to CARIFESTA XI from 16 – 25 August 2013. Many of you present today were actively involved in organizing your respective country contingents of artists and culture officials to celebrate the Eleventh Edition of the Festival. CARIFESTA is one of the Flagship programmes of our Caribbbean Community and one that we all value because it brings us together to share the richness of our cultural diversity, promotes unity and inclusiveness. I know that your meeting will spend some time reviewing CARIFESTA XI and
provide guidance to Haiti in the planning of CARlFESTA XII which will be held next year in August 2015.
We are all suffering from the financial/economic crisis, but CARIFESTA must be sustained. And to achieve this you must be steadfast in your proposals, so that in the end not only the Member State, but the Community as a whole can benefit. You may recall that the Secretary General in his remarks at the Opening Ceremony of CARlFESTA XI in Suriname, stated that in the Caribbean Community, “Culture is our Passion, Prosperity our Mission and Integration our Vision”.
These lofty goals, fuelled by our passion for culture, are at the heart of our existence as Caribbean people. Our comparative advantage in creative industries can help to bring us prosperity, and culture is central to the promotion of regional identity and unity. We could say ” Unity in Diversity”. It is a cornerstone of our regional movement and helps our people to feel connected and uniquely Caribbean.
We witnessed this recently in CARIFESTA XI and again in the implementation of our CARICOM Song Competition which was launched in April 2013 as part of the celebrations to mark the 40th Anniversary of our Caribbean Community. The Competition encouraged the
involvement of all CARICOM countries in the composition of an official CARICOM Song that would -build consciousness around Community values and inspire CARICOM identity and pride.
Sixty-five artists from fifteen countries in CARICOM entered the Competition, of which fifty-seven made it to the Semi-Final Round. The judges had a difficult job, because the creative works submitted were of a very high standard. The winner of the Competition, as you may have already heard, is the very talented Michele Henderson from Dominica, an excellent female performer groomed in our very own Region and an artiste who makes our Caribbean proud. Some of us have been fortunate to be part of a live performance a few days ago here in Guyana.
I wish to extend my warm congratulations to Ms. Henderson and to Dominica on this impressive achievement. I would also like to congratulate the second and third place winners – Mr. Adiel Thomas from Jamaica and Ms. Carmella Lawrence from St. Kitts and Nevis and to thank most sincerely, all the artists who entered the Competition. The winning song will be launched on 1st July during the Opening Ceremony of the Thirty-Fifth Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government in Antigua and Barbuda.
I would also like to thank you, the Directors of Culture who gave such tremendous support in organizing the Competition at the national level. This was truly an excellent collaboration between the Secretariat, Ministries of Culture in Member States and our artists who did
themselves and their countries proud. Directors of Culture, you have made efforts and gave priority to be here to discuss the many pressing matters on your Agenda; to learn from
each other and to join efforts in addressing the challenges we all face in ensuring a positive cultural development of our countries and especially our youth, in the face of so many external influences and very limited budgets.
We have just heard in the Anansi story, shared with us by Ms. Riane De Haas-Bledoeg, a talented staff member, that “no one person has all the wisdom”. Therefore, it is through your collective wisdom and oneness of purpose that you will be able to continue the strong tradition of giving valuable and relevant advice, for which the Regional Cultural Committee is known since 1987, when this body first met. I wish to commend you and encourage you to keep up the good work.
May your deliberations during these three days be productive and contribute to a more prosperous Caribbean Community for all.
Thank you
