FORMER CARICOM Secretary General, Sir Edwin Carrington, has hailed the “valuable and long-standing” relationship between Japan and the 15-nation regional bloc.Speaking Tuesday, at the opening of

the 16th round of CARICOM-Japan consultations in the CARICOM Secretariat in Georgetown, he noted that, since the two sides established formal relations in 1993, the “fruit of our work has been evident in a number of cooperation initiatives and technical projects in a wide range of areas, all of which have redounded to the benefit of the Governments and Peoples of CARICOM and Japan.”
According to Carrington, who served at the helm of the regional grouping for 18 years until his retirement in 2010, technical cooperation has been at the core of CARICOM-Japan ties.
The CARICOM-Japan Friendship and Cooperation Fund (JCFCF) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) are the primary mechanisms for their bilateral engagements.
Sir Edwin attested that there has been “cooperation and support at the multilateral level as well.”
He also made known his desire for further collaboration between CARICOM and Japan as the former pursues “a development path which engenders inclusiveness of all stakeholders and which would lift the knowledge base, the innovation capability, and the entrepreneurial capacity of CARICOM nationals.”
The diplomat, now Ambassador Extraordinaire in Trinidad and Tobago’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was especially appreciative of Japan’s assistance to the Region, even as the East Asian island nation grapples with its own challenges.
“CARICOM states are cognisant that Japan continues to grapple with the after effects of the devastating earthquake and tsunami of March 2011, which claimed the lives of many Japanese citizens, unfortunately,” he said, adding:“Also, we are not unmindful of the resulting fallout faced by Japan from the damage caused through the nuclear facility at Fukushima.”
Carrington acknowledged that the twin disasters, as well as the overall ill health of the global economy, have been a major drag on the world’s third largest economy.
Especially heartened
“Despite these challenges (CARICOM) ministers were especially heartened to hear of the commitment, by the Government of Japan, to drastically increase assistance to the Region,” Carrington stated, referring to a promise made by Japan’s Parliamentary Vice-Minister, Mr. Minoru Kiuchi when he met with the Region’s Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR) in May.
Carrington used the podium to remind his audience, including delegates who had flown in from Japan, as well those from regional capitals joining the discussions via videoconference, that the 2010 adoption of ‘A New Framework for Japan-CARICOM Cooperation for the 21st Century” has set the scope for CARICOM-Japan collaboration on issues such as the Global Financial and Economic Crisis, Integration into the Global Economy, the Environment and Climate Change, Human Development Issues and matters regarding the United Nations (UN) Security Council.
He said the year 2014, billed as CARICOM-Japan Friendship Year, will mark 20 years of cooperation between the two and continued:“We look forward to advancing our discussions on how we can work together to help to promote and increase mutual awareness of our respective countries through increased people-to-people exchanges and activities commemorative in their nature in diverse fields such as culture, trade and tourism, among others.
“Rest assured that CARICOM states are prepared to mark this auspicious milestone in fitting manner,” Carrington said.