The region’s leaders also have to contend with lethargy among some members within the group in the drive towards the full implementation of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) and the failure to honour several timetables they themselves set, including in the area of agricultural reform and development.

Summit host and incoming Chairman, Guyana’s President Bharrat Jagdeo and CARICOM Secretary-General, Edwin Carrington are nevertheless upbeat about the regional integration movement as it marks its 36th anniversary.

They are both confident that the Heads of Government will take steps to address the mounting challenges resulting from the impact of the global economic and financial turmoil on the small and vulnerable economies of the region, including rising unemployment.

President of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), Dr. Compton Bourne, who recently highlighted the need for “national economic leadership” to steer the region out of the current crisis largely precipitated by the global recession, notes that there have been more “exhortations than implementation and support” in many areas.

According to Bourne, after reviewing the proposed solutions from the various task forces and other studies, the CARICOM leaders need to identify measures that are “well thought out and speedily implemented.”

Bourne headed one of two task forces that focused on the implications for the region of the sharp global contraction. The other task force, led by Barbadian economist Delisle Worrell, will provide “a strategic framework and action plan for implementing priorities”.

Bourne feels the drive towards the Single Market and Economy has been a bumpy one and will only become smoother if there is progress in the thorny issue of movement of labour whereby decisions are actually implemented.

The pubic statements on immigration and the Jamaica -Trinidad trade dispute by the governments involved have only helped to fuel anti-CARICOM sentiments in those countries.

Jamaican patties were initially denied access to the Trinidadian market and other Jamaican products faced a similar fate in Belize and Barbados. In the case of Barbados, exporters there feel there is a “tit for tat”, claiming many of their containers are being held up deliberately in Kingston. While there are known mechanisms to settle trade disputes, venting on the airwaves as the first course of action, is hardly a reflection of the kind of leadership to which the CDB President has referred.

On another vexing issue – the outcry in both Barbados and Guyana over the new Barbadian immigration policy of weeding out illegal Guyanese, and concerns by some Eastern Caribbean leaders over the treatment of their nationals, it is interesting that that Barbadian Prime Minister David Thompson is using the “interference in the internal affairs” strategy used in the past by some CARICOM Governments, notably Guyana.

Separate and apart from the Barbados immigration policy, CARICOM nationals need an update on the progress towards the movement of labour, an integral part of the CSME.

HASSLE-FREE TRAVEL
Regarding “hassle-free” travel of CARICOM citizens within the region, all twelve countries participating in the CSME have put in place the CARICOM passport that entitles the holder to a six-month stay, something that immigration officers need to uphold.

The Heads of Government will hopefully provide information on the status of CARIPASS, which entitles qualifying frequent Caribbean travellers to bypass immigration lines.

One of the encouraging CARICOM developments that Bourne cited is the harmonization of regulations to facilitate capital movement in the region.

There have been several positive developments in functional cooperation, specifically in education and health, including progress towards the establishment of a Caribbean Public Health Authority and the Pan Caribbean Partnership for HIV. In education, CARICOM vocational qualifications have been established. There has also been stepped up cooperation on climate change issues.

As well, the CARICOM Development Fund was established and attracted contributions of approximately US$70 million of the US$250 million target set. The Fund will be used to provide financial and technical assistance to disadvantaged countries, regions and sectors.