NEXT month, Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) will be meeting in Georgetown for the second time in less than a year for their annual inter-sessional conference. Guyana — by default — played host to the regular summit last July, owing to the fact that Dominica was wracked by a hurricane, rendering its government both financially and logistically hamstrung to undertake this task.
President David Granger has since assumed the chairmanship of this bloc and said in his New Year message, that 2017 holds great promise for the Region to advance the integration process, which can only be possible through the involvement and participation of all.
He also called for CARICOM to resolve to play its part in strengthening the Community and to making regional unity a living, breathing experience. President Granger also noted that this year marks the mid-point of our Five-Year Strategic Plan for the period 2015-2019, a foundational element in the Community’s reform process. That process, he said, is geared towards ensuring that “our people feel the impact of the integration movement in their daily lives. Integration is not merely about systems and institutions. It is mostly about people,” he had said in the message.”
Next month’s summit will no doubt entail some of these issues about which Mr Granger spoke, as well as examining the work and progress of the community, and making plans on the way forward. However, leaders will have to confront the reality of the Donald Trump presidency. Theirs is not only the task of trying to understand what would be U.S. policy towards the Caribbean, but also finding ways to navigate any fallout. President Trump has made it clear in his inaugural speech that he will be pursuing an “America-first” policy- a position that has left world leaders “jittery.”
The U.S. is the Region’s largest trading partner and our powerful neighbor; America matters to us. According to Ambassador Sir Ron Sanders, CARICOM as a collective is hardly likely to be a focus of the new president’s perspective on trade. He said one very good reason is that the U.S. enjoys a significant balance of trade surplus with CARICOM countries collectively. According to Sir Ron in 2014, the U.S. trade surplus was $3.24 billion, rising to $4.17 billion in 2015. Only two CARICOM countries have trade surpluses with the U.S. and in both cases the surpluses are declining – Trinidad and Tobago’s surplus slipped from $3.58 billion in 2014 to $1.8 billion in 2015; Guyana dropped from $131.4 million in 2014 to $63 million in 2015.
President Obama had visited our Region and showed an interest in improving relations and increasing much-needed developmental aid. We would hope that President Trump maintains that policy and even improves it.
Meanwhile, CARICOM will be celebrating 44 years as a functioning and unified body this year and notwithstanding challenges from within and out, it is deserving of commendation for the peoples and leaders. Where CARICOM was founded on the principle that the peoples stand to gain more through collective involvement, exploitation and development of the resources within the Region, this year amidst global challenges and increasing competition, it behooves intensified focus on the principles that established the community.
The success of CARICOM beyond its establishment and attendant arms is dependent on the involvement of the peoples. It may help to remember when the conceptualisation of such a feat was being thought of and apprehension existed among the peoples, the Caribbean Festival of Arts (CARIFESTA) which in 1972 was first hosted here, provided the surety of the peoples’ abilities and endless possibilities. Given the intent to harness the unique cultural skills and talents within the Region in a unified way, it set in train not only the celebration of, but also employment and economic opportunities.