SECRETARY-GENERAL of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Ambassador Irwin LaRocque said combined and coordinated efforts are needed to advance the region’s agenda when he addressed the 31st Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM in Barbados on Tuesday.

“Whether it is the imperative of making significant progress with the Single Market and Economy; securing our financial sector; safeguarding our fiscal sovereignty; enhancing our technological capability and capacity; protecting the health and security of our people; expanding our foreign outreach – it is with one goal in mind. We have to build a resilient Caribbean Community,” Ambassador LaRocque told the heads of government.
He said issues such as the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) are critical to the process of further consolidating regional integration, noting that once addressed, the Regional Bloc would be better positioned in an increasingly complex and challenging global arena.

However, Ambassador LaRocque warned that significant progress would only be made if all hands are on deck. He said what is needed is an all-inclusive approach that embraces the skills, talents and resources of the public and private sectors, labour, civil society, youth and indeed the entire society.

“It also requires co-operation and assistance from our friends in the International Community. These combined and co-ordinated efforts will serve us in good stead, as we strive to build that resilience to combat the challenges that we face, most particularly, the existential threat of climate change,” he submitted.

Ambassador LaRocque noted that the decision by the heads of government to engage regularly with the private sector, labour and civil society is an indication of the region’s determination to be more inclusive in its deliberations.

“How can we benefit from the CSME and successfully conduct trade negotiations with third countries without the involvement of the private sector and labour? How can we maximise the use of technology for our development without the innovation and dynamism of the youth? How can we combat the scourge of crime and violence without the input of ideas and actions from civil society,” he questioned.

In the area of health, the CARICOM Secretary-General challenged the Member States to play their part in staving off the epidemic of chronic Non-Communicable Diseases and the spread of the global viruses that threaten to engulf us. The latest of these, the coronavirus, has been deadly, claiming more than a thousand lives globally thus far, he noted, but made it clear that there are no cases in CARICOM.

“Although the World Health Organisation (WHO) has deemed the risk to the Caribbean to be low, we adopted a pro-active approach and convened an emergency meeting of the Ministers of Health on the virus, with participation from the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO) the CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS) and the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA). The Regional Security System has also played a critical role in transporting samples for laboratory testing at CARPHA,” Ambassador LaRocque reported.
Meanwhile, incoming Chair of CARICOM, Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, in urging the Regional Leaders to band together to find solutions to the challenges facing the community, recalled that movement across the region in the 1930s faced common challenges and without the benefit of political organisation or labour movements, the people persevered.

Meanwhile, outgoing Chair and Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, Allen Chastanet, in addition to updating the Regional Leaders on the advances made in addressing issues such as de-risking, reported that a team from the Community observed last December’s general election in the Commonwealth of Dominica. “We are pleased to see that efforts are underway to resolve contentious issues which arose there in the lead up to the voting,” he reported. He said likewise, a CARICOM delegation will be on duty in Guyana for the upcoming election. “No doubt, we will, as is customary, provide support to the five other Member States which will be holding elections during the course of 2020. These postings are crucial in ensuring transparency and accountability in the electoral process,” Prime Minister Chastanet said.

The 31st Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM will continue today in Barbados.