BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - AS the region seeks to rebound from effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, CARICOM’s Secretary-General, Dr. Carla Barnett believes that the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME) might be the answer to that thrust.
From free trade of local produce to the movement of skills are some of the benefits to be derived from the programme, but not all territories are in sync with the initiative which has long been talked about.
During her address at the opening of the two-day CARICOM Thirty-Third Inter-Sessional Meeting of Heads of Government, Dr. Barnett acknowledged that “significant obstacles still lay in our path”, but warned that as the pandemic continues there is much concern that too many “citizens remain unvaccinated; much too many of our children are out of school; much too many of our businesses are floundering with the resultant effect on employment”.
While outlining the benefits of regional institutions like the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) and the structures of the CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS), Dr. Barnett noted that the CSME is equally important.
“We must now move that trust and confidence we have in those Institutions into those measures that make the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) work for all of us. Let us set a target to lift intra-regional trade out of the doldrums of 16-18 percent of our total trade into 25 percent by 2025,”. Dr. Barnett told regional leaders.
She believes that this could be fueled in large measure by the agriculture sector.
“The proposals put forward to this Meeting by the Special Ministerial Task Force on Agriculture are worthy of favourable consideration. That work complements the thrust led by the CARICOM Private Sector Organisation (CPSO), the ‘Twenty-five by 2025 Initiative’, aimed at reducing extra-regional agri-food imports by 25% by 2025, in response to a mandate given by the Heads of Government,” Dr. Barnett added.
Agriculture and Food Security have been sore points across the region, with the import bill topping more than US$3.8 billion as at the end of 2018.
Additionally, attention is being placed on marketing the region’s tourism product, one of the hardest hit sectors across the Caribbean.
“As the recovery takes hold among the developed countries, the time is right for our Region to act upon the proposals for joint marketing of our tourism product. The Caribbean still remains a preferred destination, and within our Member States there is a variety of attractions from the traditional to the niche markets to satisfy a broad spectrum of visitors,” she explained.
Meanwhile, attention was also given to the importance of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), which was thrust into the spotlight during the pandemic. Dr. Barnett acknowledged that COVID-19 has forced the region to bring forward the use of technology.
She called upon leaders to no longer delay the implementation of the Regional Digital Development Strategy, including the Roadmap towards the Single ICT Space.
The two-day meeting is expected to wrap up today (Mar. 2) in San Pedro, Belize.
