–to promote inclusionary governance, social cohesion among region’s citizens
By Navendra Seoraj
THE Caribbean Policy Development Centre (CPDC) is on the move to establish a civil society desk at the level of CARICOM geared towards promoting inclusionary governance and social cohesion among citizens of the region.
The CPDC at a recent two-day meeting at the Ramada Hotel, Providence, East Bank Demerara, discussed with stakeholders from across the region the importance of civil society in achieving this aim.
CPDC Director Shantal Munro-Knight told the Guyana Chronicle that her team is enthusiastic in their pursuit to get CARICOM heads of state to establish the office.
“We are tired of ad-hoc engagements and Governments calling when they feel like to meet with persons from civil society… there is no systematic process where civil society can channel their information through,” Munro-Knight said.

As such, a civil desk will foster direct engagement and provide an opportunity to develop better instituionalised mechanisms through the various CARICOM bodies.
And aside from this, it will open up an avenue for members of civil society to have frequent dialogues with ministers of Government.
Members of society, she added, must be taken as equal partners when it comes to decision-making, especially when it has a heavy impact on the nation.
President David Granger earlier this year shared similar views, stating, “A social contract could be the means of combining the talents of a wider constituency and of creating the conditions for social cooperation. The purpose of such a contract would be to reach a broad consensus on the goals of national development, to establish a sustainable institutional architecture and to create effective policy instruments for the achievement of our national objectives.

“A covenant will allow Government and the civil society to combine their resources, become more focused and exert a greater impact on society. Civil society has the experience, expertise and social capital to address most social problems. It will facilitate the pooling of resources to better address the root causes of social problems rather than merely dealing with the symptoms,” President Granger had said.

Such a desk, Munro-Knight said, will also aid in a balanced transformation of regional economies.
“There can be growth of an economy but not good human development happening… hence, there should be a growth model that brings people together, especially the poor and marginalised,” she iterated.

Though civil society members contribute a lot towards social development, they gain little recognition.
The CPDC Director contends that the more persons are edified about their roles in society, the more recognition civil society would gain for their contributions.
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