– at CARICOM-Brazil Summit opening
Incumbent Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Prime Minister of Dominica, Roosevelt Skerrit, has hailed the bridge across the Takutu River linking Guyana and Brazil as a physical connection that will expand economic benefits to the Region. Delivering opening remarks on the occasion of the inaugural CARICOM-Brazil Summit yesterday in Brasilia, the Prime Minister, who is also the island’s Minister of Finance, Foreign Affairs and Information Technology, said the bridge will help make available a trade route which will further the efforts of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).
The CSME was intended to provide the springboard to facilitate CARICOM’s integration into the hemispheric and global environment through more competitive production, thereby enhancing trade relations.
Alluding to some member States which have begun formalising their trade relationship with Brazil, Prime Minister Skerrit made reference to Guyana’s move to sign a Partial Scope Agreement and St. Kitts and Nevis’ expression of interest in becoming part of that agreement.
The Partial Scope Agreement follows a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on trade and investment which was signed in 1999 by the Presidents of Guyana, Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
Following discussions with Brazil in 2002 on ways to operationalise the MoU, the Brazilian Foreign Ministry proposed that Guyana consider negotiating a special trade agreement as provided for in the Treaty of Montevideo, which authorises the conclusion of Partial Scope Agreements with non-treaty countries.
The aim of the Agreement is to foster bilateral trade-flows through the exchange of tariff preferences between Guyana and Brazil, increase cooperation on trade matters, and participation of the private sector.
At yesterday’s summit Prime Minister Skerrit said, “I look forward to further discussions on trade and economic co-operation between both sides during this Summit.”
At the official opening of the Takutu Bridge on September 14, 2009, several technical agreements were inked between the Governments of Guyana and Brazil including a memorandum of understanding for the creation of a frontier committee, the promotion of trade and investment and on national defence matters.
Guyana has already secured positive engagements with Brazil in the agriculture sector and recently a team of Brazilian businessmen visited the country in search of trade and investment opportunities.
President Bharrat Jagdeo headed the Guyana delegation to the summit in Brasilia, which also included Minister of Foreign Affairs Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud, and Director General in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Elisabeth Harper.
At the summit, President Jagdeo said there may be times when Brazil’s views may conflict with the interests of the CARICOM Member States, but it was in those times that ways had to be found to work together.
In this regard, he indicated that the meeting of the Heads of State and Government was a useful one that would allow leaders of CARICOM and Brazil to speak candidly. He also encouraged regular meetings of Ministers and technical officials.
With regard to issues which require advocacy of CARICOM’s positions, President Jagdeo pointed to the reform of the global financial system, debt relief for middle-income countries and climate change.
In his opening remarks, Prime Minister Skerrit hailed as encouraging the tireless efforts to bridge the gap between Brazil and the CARICOM region.
Brazil has signalled its interest in deepening relations with CARICOM through the establishment of Embassies in each of the 14 CARICOM Member States, and through technical assistance in the fight against HIV/AIDS, with the provision of anti-retroviral drugs for the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) countries, monitoring and evaluation of HIV/AIDS programmes, and training on HIV/AIDS, in collaboration with CARICOM health institutions.
Considered a new chapter in the relationship, the CARICOM-Brazil summit will be heralded by a Technical Co-operation Agreement addressing 16 areas of co-operation, including the key areas of agriculture, health, tourism and transportation and a proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Technical Co-operation highlighting five priority areas.
The latter deal Prime Minister Skerrit said, will give impetus to the technical Co-operation Agreement.