(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) Excellency, allow me to begin by warmly welcoming you to the CARICOM Secretariat and to Guyana. I trust that you will be as at home here as your distinguished and much appreciated predecessor was.
These occasions are always pleasant ones, and all the more so when one is welcoming the representative of a state that has been as much a friend to the Caribbean as Australia has.
Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen, CARICOM-Australia relations have developed with remarkable alacrity and depth since the first formal meeting of the leaders of the Community and their Australian counterpart, in November 2009. I suspect that neither side had anticipated at that time that relations would have advanced to the current, most satisfactory state, in such a short time. In November 2009, CARICOM and Australian leaders signed a Memorandum of Understanding formally establishing a framework for technical cooperation between the parties. That technical cooperation has been as effective as it has been varied, ranging from collaboration on renewable energy, food security, agricultural cooperation and climate change to cooperation in sports, youth, culture, education and training, and human rights. It has been conducted under three principal rubrics: Cooperation on Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction; Economic Resilience; and People to People Exchanges, areas which are important to the Caribbean Community.
Additionally, Australia’s support to the CARICOM Member State of Haiti has been particularly appreciated, having stepped in generously at critical junctures to lend direct support following the 2010 earthquake and beyond. With Australia’s help, and in collaboration with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), for example, CARICOM was able to provide support for sanitation and hygiene to help combat the cholera epidemic through the construction of sanitation facilities in Cite Soleil. Through Australia’s assistance, CARICOM was also able to support Haiti’s re-vegetation efforts. The Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) both played important roles in respect of that effort.
Ambassador, I expect that technical cooperation between our parties will only deepen and widen in the coming years. There are so many other areas in which there is scope for mutually reinforcing engagement. One such is the implementation of practicable and results-oriented solutions to address the scourge of Non-Communicable Diseases facing CARICOM countries and those of the Pacific. Still, another is the development of innovative and entrepreneurial building opportunities for youth. The potential to make a real and powerful impact in these spheres is, I believe, immense. It is grounded in the real experiences that Australia and CARICOM have shared, and is underpinned by the strong political will to work together.
Concretely, that common political will has achieved much. Australia and CARICOM have jointly lobbied in multiple global fora for attention to be paid to the plight of Small Island Developing and Low-Lying Coastal States in the face of the enormous threat of climate change. We have also jointly lobbied for the adoption of a robust Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) which would address the proliferation of small arms and light weapons (SALW) – a threat to the very fabric of Caribbean societies.
In each of these undertakings, collaboration has allowed our countries’ voices to be better heard by the international community and our positions to be better understood. Indeed, today we can proudly say that our joint efforts have contributed to a momentous achievement, the conclusion by the United Nations General Assembly, a mere two days ago, of a globally binding Arms Trade Treaty! This is also a tribute to the multilateral process that allows the global family of nations to partner in the pursuit of the safety and best interests of the global community through negotiation, compromise and democratic process.
For its part, CARICOM has been assertive in shouldering its responsibilities in this mutually beneficial relationship, most recently demonstrating its commitment to and trust in Australia by supporting that country’s successful bid to a seat on the UN Security Council.
But it would be to underestimate the relationship between CARICOM and Australia if one were to believe that it stands only on political and technical ties. CARICOM-Australia relationship is, at its core, a deep friendship. We share similar values. We place importance on democracy, human rights and on the sacrosanct global governance values of equality between states, and the sovereignty of each. We rejoice and cry over the fluctuating fortunes of our cricket teams – a deeply shared passion – and most importantly, we value our people and hold their development as our highest aspiration. This is the substance of our friendship.
It is in the spirit of this deep and genuine friendship, Ambassador, that I formally accept your credentials and congratulate you on the assumption of this important post. My staff and I look forward to working with you as you discharge your duties.
