It is with a sense of deep loss that the Caribbean Community awoke yesterday to the news that the Hon. William G. Demas, OCC – former Secretary-General of CARICOM – died on Saturday, 28 November. This follows news of the death, some 48 hrs earlier of another former Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community, Dr. Kurleigh King of Barbados.
Mr.Demas who was 69 years old, was born in Trinidad and Tobago and after graduating from Cambridge University, devoted his entire professional life to the development of his country and the Region. Indeed, Mr. Demas was the chief architect of the Caribbean Community.
Apart from his tenure as Secretary-General of CARICOM (1970-1974), he served at various times, as Economic Adviser to the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago; President of the Caribbean Development Bank; Governor of the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago and Senior Fellow at the Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of the West Indies. To all these positions he brought a special and unique talent of skill, commitment and innovation which enabled him to pioneer the crafting of arrangements for Caribbean integration and development, as well as to inspire those who were privileged to have worked with him – including the current Secretary-General of CARICOM and the current President of the Caribbean Development Bank.
Mr. Demas – one of the first recipients of the Order of the Caribbean Community (OCC) – was the quintessential Caribbean Man. He lived and worked throughout the Region. He never wavered in his belief in West Indian integration and remained a steadfast advocate of Caribbean solutions to Caribbean problems. As an economist, he brought to bear his exceptional intellect on the questions of particular relevance to his Region and his seminal work “The Economics of Development in Small Countries with Special Reference to the Caribbean” is considered a classic in its field. His influence over a generation of Caribbean thinkers and economists has been profound. His capacity for hard work was legendary. His legacy remains however, not only in his publications and the institutions which he was instrumental in building, but also in the human capital to whom he devoted much time and energy in developing.
The Region will truly miss this great son. In mourning his death, the Caribbean should celebrate his life’s outstanding contribution to the upliftment of its People by building the truly united Region for which Mr. Demas devoted his life.
On behalf of the Governments and People of the entire Caribbean Community, I extend profound condolences to the family of the late Hon. William G. Demas.
