(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana)The 19th Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of the Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) opened in Nassau, The Bahamas on Friday with a warning that time was ebbing away from the Community in the quest to forge integration.
The warning came from CARICOM Secretary-General His Excellency Edwin Carrington as he addressed the opening session at the Sheraton Cable Beach Resort in the Bahamian capital. The Secretary-General said that time was not on the side of the Region as it moved to complete the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) and take the integration arrangements to a higher level.
Mr Carrington was one of three speakers at the opening along with the Chairman of CARICOM, the Rt Honourable Hubert Ingraham, Prime Minister of The Bahamas and the Honourable David Thompson, Prime Minister of Barbados.
The Secretary-General noted the success of the security and travel arrangements of the Cricket World Cup 2007 and exhorted the Community to use that same unity of purpose and action which fuelled that success in all its endeavours.
“I have recalled that event particularly to highlight the fact that such success would not have been possible without the kind of unity of purpose and action that is required to maximise the Community benefits for its citizens. It is that unity of purpose and action that has been the foundation of our success in areas such as health, education, disaster management – in functional cooperation – and in some aspects of our foreign relations,” Mr Carrington said.
In his address Prime Minister Thompson gave the assurance that the government and people of Barbados remained resolutely committed to the ideals, principles and business of the Caribbean Community.
Prime Minister Thompson said that the rising cost of living, major criminal incursions on ‘our way of life’ and the complexities that retard regional air and maritime transport were major Regional concerns at this time.
“Now is the time for this consortium of new leaders to inject novel perspectives and employ a spirit of vigour towards extending the many benefits accruing to the Region’s people. We can accomplish this through progressive thinking and strong vision,” he stated.
In recognising the work done by his predecessor to implement the CSME, Mr Thompson recommended that the Conference of Heads of Government create a lasting tribute in the form of a University Chair or some other relevant regional programme in the name of the Rt Honourable Owen Arthur that would bring lasting benefits to future generations of Caribbean people.
Chairman of the Conference, Prime Minister Ingraham warned that the Region’s strongest economic sector, tourism, was under performing.
“While world travel and tourism continued to grow by as much as seven (7) per cent last year, we in the Caribbean have enjoyed a far smaller rate of growth – hovering at as little as 2½ per cent. Even more chilling, more than one (1) percent of that growth in tourism is reportedly accounted for by expansion in regional, but not CARICOM, tourism destinations,” Mr Ingraham disclosed.
Prime Minister Ingraham pointed out that while the importance of a viable sustainable tourism sector had been recognised, he believed that efforts at regional co-operation in the sector could be more focussed and intensified. “We might improve collaboration and cooperation in areas such as product development, service standards, marketing, eco-tourism and sustainable tourism promotion and development,” he indicated.
He linked the cost of the tourism product to the Region’s failure to link its agricultural and marine resources sectors to the consumer which would reduce the food import bill and the price of food.
The Chairman noted that rising crime levels in “our communities are threatening even our traditional view of ourselves as warm and friendly people”. He praised the “tremendous efforts” of national, regional and international law enforcement agencies, but observed that the illicit drug trade had not abated and contributed to the expansion of a gun culture in the Region with “awful social and economic consequences.”
During the morning session, the Heads of Government bade farewell to the outgoing Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, His Excellency Donald McKinnon describing him as a true friend of the Region.
The two day conference ends tomorrow.
