(WiredJA) The pressing matter of the full free movement of nationals throughout the CARICOM region as well as the 25% reduction in agricultural imports into the Region by 2025, will be high on the agenda when Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Heads of Government meet in St George’s, Grenada, from 3-5 July 2024, for their 47th Regular Meeting.
The Meeting’s agenda will also comprise the agri-food systems agenda which prioritises food and nutrition security; climate change and sustainable development; foreign policy; the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME); and engagement with social partners.
As CARICOM deepens Regional Integration through the CSME and other sectoral programmes, attention will be placed on the operationalisation of the Multilateral Air Services Agreement (MASA) that envisions a single market for air transport services within the Community.
Heads of Government will also review the progress toward the goals towards a Strategy for Regional Digital Resilience 2025-2030.
Incoming Chairman, the Honourable Dickon Mitchell, is lead Head of Government for Science and Technology, including Information and Communication, in the CARICOM Quasi Cabinet.
Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Baroness Patricia Scotland, will be the Meeting’s Special Guest, and two distinguished sons of our Region: legendary Guyanese Cricketer, Sir Clive Hubert Lloyd, and quintessential Jamaican Regionalist, Mr. Roderick Rainford, former Secretary-General of CARICOM, will receive the Order of the Caribbean Community during the Opening Ceremony, scheduled for Wednesday 3 July at St. George’s University.
The Incoming Chairman, the Hon. Dickon Mitchell of Grenada; the Outgoing Chairman, His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali of Guyana; and the CARICOM Secretary-General, Dr. Carla Barnett will deliver addresses at the Ceremony, which will be streamed on CARICOM’s social media platforms from 5.00 pm.
On Thursday 4 July, Heads of Government will conduct business sessions at the Radisson Beach Resort, Grand Anse, historically significant as the birthplace of the Grand Anse Declaration and Work Programme, which was signed during the 10th Meeting of the Conference of CARICOM Heads of Government on 12 July 1989.
The Declaration was intended to enhance economic and political cooperation among Member States, emphasizing sovereignty, non-interference, and equality principles. Most notably, it led to the establishment of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), promoting economic growth, competitiveness, and opportunities for citizens of Member States.
The customary closing press conference will be held on Friday 5 July at the Radisson Beach Resort Grenada in hybrid format. The following day, Saturday 6 July, professional and amateur athletes from the Caribbean will compete in the Seventeenth CARICOM Seçkine 10K, Open 10K, and Youth 1.7K Road Races, which start at the Camerhogne Park in Grand Anse.
Grenada will host the Conference during its 50th Independence anniversary celebration, while the Community will close the curtains on the 50th anniversary of the establishment of CARICOM. These milestones serve as a crucial reference point for leaders to shape a regional integration agenda beyond CARICOM’s 50th anniversary.