BRADES, Montserrat, June 21st 2011 – Montserrat is participating along with other CARICOM Member States in a two-day review of the Public Education Programme on the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).

CSME is the vision of 15 CARICOM States to build shared prosperity within Member States by removing trade barriers and allowing the free movement of goods, services, capital and people.

Director of Regional Affairs & Trade, Claude Hogan and Director of Information & Communications, Nerissa Golden are in Guyana to assist in the adoption of measures designed to achieve greater effectiveness in the promotion of regional integration.

Several projects are being evaluated including the CSME in Schools funded by the 9th EDF, CARICOM Trade and Competitiveness project funded by CIDA, Baseline Study funded by USAID and the EU-Funded Impact Assessment Report 2010.

More than 40 officials from regional governments, trade departments and the media are taking part in the review to ensure consensus on a series of recommendations emanating from the reports, which look at how many people know about the CSME, the levels of engagement and the barriers to more people using the CSME to do business and/or work in other CARICOM countries.

Over the past seven years 2.5 million US dollars from a variety of international partners has been used to promote the CSME around the Caribbean.

One observation made in the Baseline Study is that because promoting the CSME has been dependent on donors, there has not been consistency in the campaign to educate and assist with implementation across Member States. A large number of persons surveyed across the region felt that there was not enough political cooperation for CSME to work.

It is hoped that the adopted recommendations will be implemented and will lead to the branding of the CSME and to increased awareness and activities of persons to access other markets and economies.

Montserrat became a member of CARICOM in May, 1974.

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