After almost four years of planning and consultations, Caricom Secretary-General Edwin Carrington on Friday opened the Caricom Competi-tion Commission (CCC) in Suriname.
The Caricom Competition Commission (CCC) was created under Article 171 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguara-mas. Like the Caribbean Court of Justice the Caricom Regional Organisation for Standards and Quality and the soon to be established Regional Accreditation Body, it is a vital institution, the release said. Its particular focus is on fostering efficiency in the marketplace, promoting consumer welfare and protecting their interest.
On Thursday, Carrington had also underscored the importance of establishing the Caribbean Regional Informa-tion and Translation Institute (CRITI), to be headquartered in Suriname, in creating “A Community for All.”
As regard the CCC, Carrington said “though a variety of other actions by several parties with the Caribbean Community” contributed significantly to the launch, it was the “boldness and courage of the President of the Republic of Suriname” Dr Ronald Venetiaan, which “really set us on course.” The Secretary-General recalled that Venetiaan had written to him in 2004 requesting that he inform the Conference of Heads of Government of Caricom that Suriname was willing to host the Competition Commission, which is provided for in the Revised Treaty.
Carrington said as institutions, the operations of Competition Commissions have generally served to generate the following benefits: improved economic efficiency leading to greater competitiveness – which for us in Cariforum is of quintessential importance as we face the implementation of the Cari-forum-EU Economic Partner-ship Agreement; progressive technical development and enhanced structure and organization of markets. It has also given households and consumers a wider variety of choices and improved quality of goods and services – overall providing greater value for money.
Clearly, he said, if as is evident, the future economic development of the Community will be essentially market-driven, then the CCC is not only necessary but indispensable. Indeed, it seems set to become yet another important pillar of our integration structure, he added.
The Secretary-General said too a notable feature of the CCC is its enforcement role. This role “represents a major paradigm shift in the way the Caribbean Community does business. The operations of our institutions thus far, have eschewed punitive measures.” However, he said, the “smooth and efficient operation of the Single Market and Economy requires adherence to the law and the rules” and this is the reason that the CCC must have powers of sanction.
Carrington invited all stakeholders to make effective use of the CCC which, in the discharge of its role and purpose, could very well determine the future course of the Com-munity’s development in the decades ahead. Its main function within the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME) are to apply the rules of competition, promote and protect competition, co-ordinate the implementation of Competition Policy, monitor anti-competitive business conduct, promote the establishment of national Competition Institutions and harmonisation of Competition Law as well as to advise the Council for Trade and Economic Development on Competition and Consumer Protection policies.
Fireworks
Fireworks lit up the sky as Dr Kusha Haraksingh, of Trinidad and Tobago, was sworn in as CCC Chairman. Haraksingh, an economist, historian and lawyer, is the Head of the Department of History, at UWI’s St Augustine campus. He holds a BA in History, an LLB from the University of London and a PhD in Economic History. The other commissioners are attorney-at-law Patterson Keith Herman Cheltenham, QC of Barbados, who possesses extensive experience in Insurance, Admin-istrative and Labour Laws as well as the Law of Trust.
Economist Dr Trevor Michael Augustine Farrell, of Trinidad and Tobago, who is also a business consultant and senior Lecturer in Economics at UWI, St Augustine is also a CCC commissioner. He holds a PhD in Economics and has more than 15 years experience as a consultant in various fields. Hans Rudolf Lim A Po of Suriname, who is the Rector-Dean of the FHR Lim A Po Institute for Social Studies, has also been appointed commissioner. He holds the Master of Laws degree from the University of Leiden in the Netherlands, and has lectured in law at the University of Suriname.
Dominican Economist Dr Maureen Paul is also a commissioner. She holds a PhD in Economics from Warwick University and a Postgraduate certificate in Competition Policy. She is an Economic Advisor to the UK Office of Fair Trading working on competition policy in the UK and EU markets.
Caricom said Guyanese attorney Dr Barton Scotland is also a commissioner. He is in private practice in the areas of Natural Resources and Investment Law, Negotiations and International Law. He holds a Master of Laws degree and a PhD in International Law. Attorney and Ambassador AB Stewart Stephenson of Jamaica, who is the General Manager of the Factories Corporation of Jamaica, is also a commissioner. Stephenson holds both a BSc degree in Management Studies and an LLB from the University of the West Indies, and has been both Jamaica’s Consul General to Toronto and Ambassador to Cuba. He has also lectured on Securities at the Jamaican Institute of Management.
The commissioners are appointed for a five-year period and their appointments may be renewed for a further five years.
Co-mingling
According to Caricom, Suriname vice-President Ramdein Sardjoe, Minister of Trade and Industry Clifford Marica, speaker and other members of the National Assembly and other ministers; Chairman of the Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission, Justice Michael de la Bastide and Representa-tive of the European Union Competition Commissioner, Ambassador Gert Heikens, delegate of the European Union were among those who attended.
Meanwhile, Cariforum (Caricom plus the Dominican Republic) agreed with support from the EU, to establish CRITI. Carrington said CRITI’s importance derives from the fact that the Region’s linguistic diversity, though “a vital part of our cultural heritage and wealth, can sometimes pose a challenge to the progress of our regional integration process which is the most viable path to developing the Region.”
He made these comments to an audience comprising the Suriname president and vice-president, Minister of Planning and Development Co-operation Ricardo Van Ravenswaay, members of the National Assembly and other ministers, Justice de La Bastide, Ambassador Heikens and other members of the diplomatic corps and other Cariforum representatives.
Carrington said institutions such as CRITI will serve to enhance the co-mingling of peoples and the strengthening of the community. He said, too, locating the institution and the CCC, in Suriname confirms the central role that that country has now assumed in both Cariforum and Caricom.
He said that it was with this awareness that he travelled to Brussels, in January 2007, and signed with EU Development Commissioner Louis Michel, a Financing Agreement for a Caribbean Integration Support Programme valued at 40.5 million Euros, all grant funds. Most relevant, he said, the Agreement provided more than 1.5 million Euros to establish CRITI, and one year later the institute was launched.
The Secretary-General said CRITI’s role will also include translating the necessary information and forms that will make the movement of goods, people and service, within the context of the CSME, smoother.
Its role will be beneficial in expanding the trade opportunities with Cariforum and in reaching out to the Departements Outre Mers [French overseas territories] and the Dutch Overseas Territories in the Caribbean. According to the release, “On a demand basis,” CRITI will address some of these constraints and challenges.
It said too, of central importance, CRITI ”
will need early to translate key CARIFORUM and CARICOM decisions, agreements, policies and strategies into the four official languages of CARIFORUM and to facilitate Community discussion of important integration issues.” Overall this will serve to bring the various linguistic groups of the Region closer and aid the widening and deepening of integration processes.
Already consideration is being given to cost recovery charges as one of the means to sustain this critical institution, Carrington said.
