Conference on Caribbean integration calls for recommitment to regional co-operation

A University of the West Indies (UWI) conference on Caribbean integration, which was held in Jamaica with the support of the Commonwealth Secretariat, has called for a quicker pace and wider involvement in the regional integration movement.

In a statement called the 'Mona Appeal', which is to be conveyed to Prime Minister of Grenada and CARICOM Chairman, Tillman Thomas, the conference noted that regarding CARICOM (Caribbean Community), “the most urgent need was not for broad decision-making; it was for implementing decisions already made.”

The statement called on CARICOM to ideally “commit itself to the implementation, within the next two years, of a number of priority measures, including the adoption of a strategic plan for regional development, the promotion of joint production arrangements, the freer movement of people and the establishment of an effective system of regional governance to facilitate the implementation of agreed decisions.”

It also underscored the importance of the role to be played by a wide cross-section of actors in society including the private sector, the labour movement, civil society and the University of the West Indies.

At the conference, which was held from 16 to 18 February at the UWI Mona Campus, Caribbean academics, senior officials, politicians, international organisations, representatives of civil society groups and members of the public discussed global trends and the impact of the changing international environment on the Caribbean.  They also considered the economic, social and political challenges which the region had to address to ensure the development of its peoples.

Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Ransford Smith, who addressed the conference, said the Commonwealth has always placed great importance on advocacy for small states.

He noted that research findings repeatedly show small states - and least developed countries - as lagging behind in growth performance, and that the Caribbean made up one third of this grouping.

Among the challenges facing the Caribbean region are the debt burden that currently constricts fiscal space and limits social expenditure, the high level of migration that depletes skills, and the growing regional security problem.

“Many of the challenges facing the region can and must of necessity be addressed in concert with others, within and outside the region. The Commonwealth, with its diverse composition and a recognised tradition of advocacy on behalf of small states, is well suited for this role,” said Mr Smith. 

The Commonwealth Secretariat was lauded for the supportive role it has played in the Caribbean.

Professor Nigel Harris, vice-chancellor of UWI, noted that the contributions of the Commonwealth to the Caribbean were both “numerous and welcomed".

Meanwhile former Prime Minister of Jamaica, P J Patterson in his address said: “Of all the multilateral organisations of which the countries of CARICOM are members, none is as important to the advancement of our interest in the international community as the Commonwealth.”