Trade and economic relations between the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Canada date back to the early 18th century when the British northern Atlantic colonies exchanged fish, lumber and other staples for West Indian rum, molasses and spices.  Currently, trade and economic co-operation relations are covered under a number of instruments, namely, the 1979 Caricom-Canada Trade and Economic Co-operation Agreement and its Protocols, including the CARICOM-Canada 1998 Protocol on Rum;CARIBCAN Agreement which is a non-reciprocal preferential trade agreement that grants unilateral duty free
The number of Caribbean Community States satisfying the legal requirement for the Free Movement of Skilled Persons has increased by two with the governments of Jamaica and St Vincent and the Grenadines having recently enacted legislation to this effect.
The Free Movement of Skilled Persons is among the key elements for the achievement of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy.
The newly appointed Board of Directors of the CARICOM Foundation for Art and Culture held its inaugural meeting at the Pegasus Hotel in Jamaica on November 17, 1997.
The Directors, who were appointed by the CARICOM Secretary General for a period of three years are_ Ms Patricia Bishop, Trinidad and Tobago; Dr Christopher Blackwell, Jamaica; Mr. Roy Cayetano, Belize; Dr Howard Fergus, Montserrat, Mr. Carlos Hee Houng, Trinidad and Tobago; Professor Rex Nettleford, Jamaica and Ms Cynthia Wilson, Barbados.
While most countries have ceased to regard violence against women, and in particular domestic violence, as a private matter, we in the CARICOM Region are still too indifferent, if not too tolerant, of violence against women.
We are still a long way off from achieving the desired state of "Zero Tolerance for Violence Against Women" and the ultimate goal of a violence-free society.
The Community has been shocked and saddened by the sudden death of the former Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Mr George Chambers.
Mr Chambers will be remembered by the Region for his commitment to the integration process. This commitment was ably demonstrated soon after he assumed office in 1981 by the integral role he played in the revival of Meetings of the Conference of Heads of Government - the supreme decision-making authority of the Community - at Ocho Rios, Jamaica in 1982, after a hiatus of seven years.
The CARICOM Secretariat invites entries for a competition to select a logo for the 25thanniversary commemoration of the Caribbean Community in 1998.
The competition is open to citizens of all Member States as well as the Associate Members, British Virgin Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
A prize of $2500 (EC) will be awarded to the winning entry.
The entries in two sizes with dimensions of_ 2"x 2" and 8"x 5" should be submitted by 19 December 1997 to_
Six CARICOM Heads of government are among the leaders of the 71-nation African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States, gathering in Libreville the capital of the small French-speaking Central African State of Gabon, for their first ever summit.
The ACP Group is a 22 year old organisation of developing countries linked to the European Union through the Lomé Convention.
A Regional Consultation on the ruling of the World Trade Organisation=s (WTO) Appellate Body with respect to the European Union=s banana regime was held recently at the Headquarters of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat, Georgetown, Guyana.
The Caribbean has begun to prepare for the first of the follow-up meetings with the United States after the May 10 Summit meeting in Barbados between the Region's leaders and US President Bill Clinton.
At that meeting, joint committees were established to achieve the objectives of the Bridgetown Declaration of Principles and to maintain the process of consultation. These committees were identified as Justice and Security and Development, Finance and Environmental Issues, the latter is expected to work in close collaboration with the CARICOM/US Trade and Investment Council.