Acknowledgements
Salutations
The formal opening of the Headquarters of the Community in this rich and diverse land is a particularly touching occasion for me personally. I had to be here. I am honoured that I have the privilege to speak to this august gathering.
It is a moment filled with nostalgia but I must resist the temptation simply to indulge in fond reminiscence.
(CARICOM Secretariat, Georgetown, Guyana) The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has secured the sum of US$81 million in USAID Assistance to undertake its regional development priorities in Trade Competitiveness, HIV/AIDS and the reconstruction of Grenada.
The funds, which make up part of a five-year programme, mark another important stage in what is described as a "strong, substantial and strategic relationship between USAID and the CARICOM Region."
CARICOM leaders have recommended that financial assistance to Grenada be in the form of "grants and aid and not loans," and they agreed to support a call for a moratorium on Grenada's debt repayments.
At the conclusion of an emergency meeting of Heads held Wednesday 15 September, in Trinidad and Tobago, the Heads agreed on a number of arrangements and made several recommendations including an urgent call for the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) to hold an emergency board meeting to "consider appropriate flexible arrangements" to assist Grenada.
In keeping with the decision taken by Heads of Government at their 25th Regular Meeting in Grenada 4-7 July, the 18th meeting of the Bureau of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) will be held at Grand Anse, Grenada on Wednesday (July 28) to receive the report of the CARICOM Ministerial team which visited Haiti earlier this month. The Bureau is comprised of the Chairman (The Prime Minister of Grenada), the Outgoing Chairman (The Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda), the Incoming Chairman (The President of Suriname), and the Secretary General.
The Twenty-Fifth Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community was held in Grand Anse, Grenada from 4 to 7 July 2004. Dr. the Right Honourable Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister of Grenada and Chairman of CARICOM presided over the Meeting of the Conference, the work programme of which sought to advance the process of regional integration.
Mr. Chairman, thank you for affording me the opportunity to speak today on Belize's fulfillment of its Quasi-Cabinet responsibility as it relates to sustainable development issues within the Region.
Two beaming school children from Grenada who participated in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Thirtieth Anniversary Art Competition were presented with their trophies in Grenada today.
The students, Sean Harford and Shellon Eleazer placed second in the junior and senior categories respectively in the competition, which was one of the activities geared for the Community's youth during the anniversary year, February 2003 to March 2004.
Barbados_
CBC Radio, Barbados, has a long history of collaborative relationships with broadcast entities in the Caribbean Community on development and integration issues.
Since the early 1970s, with the advent of the Caribbean Broadcasting Union, we have provided personnel and financial resources for regional broadcasters to travel for coverage of culture and aspirations of peoples throughout the Region. Indeed, over time, we have become a part of the very essence of the Caribbean Community; fulfilling our role in building an informed and educated society.
The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) now has its own voice. Leaders gathered for the 25th Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM in Grenada were among the first audience to experience the commissioning of CARICOM's most recent connectivity initiative, Radio CARICOM.
Mr. Chairman;
Colleague Heads of Government;
Distinguished Members of the Legislative,
Judicial and Executive Authorities of Grenada;
Esteemed Secretary General of the Commonwealth;
Esteemed Secretary General of the Organisation of American States;
Excellencies of the Diplomatic Corps;
Distinguished Delegates;
Specially Invited Guests;
Ladies and Gentlemen;
Brothers and Sisters_