CARICOM Consults Saint Lucian Civil Society

Contact: John Emmanuel

Wednesday, October 24, 2001 – Saint Lucia was the venue last Friday for the ninth in a series of consultations which the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat is having with civil society in member states, as preparations move forward on the establishment of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).

The St. Lucia consultation, overseen by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in conjunction with the Ministry of Community Development, brought together over 45 persons from a wide cross section of society representing religious organizations, trade unions, the media and youth and community groups.

In an address, Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Community Development,  Hon. Jon Odlum, said Caribbean people, now more than ever, needed to prepare themselves to deal with the  eventuality of the CSME.

“As the players involved in determining the success of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy, we must ensure that our attitudes are in sync with the concept because the effectiveness of the CSME will depend on how prepared we are to make the necessary adjustment and sacrifices to facilitate its growth,”  Odlum said.

Saint Lucia’s recently appointed Ambassador to CARICOM, His Excellency Anthony Severin, expressed the view that one of  the major impediments to the establishment of the critical Single Market and Economy,  was the people of the region themselves.

“On one hand, governments are being accused of not doing enough to promote the region’s integration, to promote the free movement of people, goods and services. Yet we need to ask who are the objectors when Trinidadians or Guyanese appear to be all over our city or construction sites, when they are all over our stores as tellers and clerks, who are the principal objectors when CARICOM goods and services appear to flood our markets,” he observed.

CARICOM Secretary General Edwin Carrington said the recommendations from the St. Lucia consultation would be included in a background document for the Regional Encounter of Civil Society now scheduled for Barbados in early 2002.

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