CARICOM leaders agree to review decision-making process to advance single market implementation

By Stabroek News On In Guyana News |
Participants at the recently ended summit. In front row (l-r) are: Irfaan Ali, President, Guyana; Roosevelt Skerrit, Prime Minister, Dominica; Chandrikapersad Santokhi, President, Suriname; Chairman, Prime Minister John Antonio Briceño, Belize; Secretary-General, CARICOM, Dr Carla Barnett; Dr Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister, Grenada; Mia Mottley, Prime Minister, Barbados; and Phillip Davis, Prime Minister, The Bahamas. In back row are (l-r): Kamina Johnson-Smith, Foreign Minister, Jamaica; Alva Baptiste, Foreign Minister, Saint Lucia; Natalio Wheatley, Deputy Premier, British Virgin Islands; Charles Washington Misick, Premier, Turks and Caicos Islands; Joseph E. Farrell, Premier, Montserrat, E. Ariel Henry, Acting President and Prime Minister, Haiti; Senator Dr Amery Browne, Foreign Minister, Trinidad and Tobago; and Montgomery Daniel, Deputy Prime Minister, St. Vincent and the Grenadines (CARICOM photo)
Participants at the recently ended summit. In front row (l-r) are: Irfaan Ali, President, Guyana; Roosevelt Skerrit, Prime Minister, Dominica; Chandrikapersad Santokhi, President, Suriname; Chairman, Prime Minister John Antonio Briceño, Belize; Secretary-General, CARICOM, Dr Carla Barnett; Dr Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister, Grenada; Mia Mottley, Prime Minister, Barbados; and Phillip Davis, Prime Minister, The Bahamas. In back row are (l-r): Kamina Johnson-Smith, Foreign Minister, Jamaica; Alva Baptiste, Foreign Minister, Saint Lucia; Natalio Wheatley, Deputy Premier, British Virgin Islands; Charles Washington Misick, Premier, Turks and Caicos Islands; Joseph E. Farrell, Premier, Montserrat, E. Ariel Henry, Acting President and Prime Minister, Haiti; Senator Dr Amery Browne, Foreign Minister, Trinidad and Tobago; and Montgomery Daniel, Deputy Prime Minister, St. Vincent and the Grenadines (CARICOM photo)

With CARICOM long accused of moving too slowly in implementing the Single Market and Economy (CSME), regional leaders have now agreed to modify the way decisions are taken in an effort to be more proactive.

At the recently concluded 33rd Intersessional Meeting of The Conference of Heads of Government, CARICOM leaders agreed that implementation of the CSME is the region’s best option for responding to the current development challenges and for building a more resilient community. According to a statement issued at the end of the 2-day meeting, the leaders also agreed that immediate urgent action on CSME implementation was imperative.