The implementation of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) by 2005 is crucial to the social and economic advancement of the peoples of the Region in an era of increased globalisation and dominance by large economic groupings, Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Hon. Baldwin Spencer told staff of the CARICOM Secretariat in Guyana today.
csme
INTRODUCTION
I wish to first of all extend my sincere congratulations to the Director, Board and Staff of the National Insurance Office on the occasion of its 37th anniversary.
I also wish to express my sincere gratitude to the National Insurance Office for the honor bestowed upon me to deliver this evening the keynote address with as topic "the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) and the Free Movement of Labour Across the Region and its Implications for Social Security".
Mr. Chairman,
Elected Officials of New York State and New York City,
Distinguished Members of the Diplomatic and Consular Corps,
The Hon. Sylvia Radix,
Dr. Edison Jackson,
Assistant Secretary-General of the CARICOM Secretariat,
Specially Invited Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
We share a world that is caught up in dramatic change, much of which have to do with the supplanting of long standing social and economic systems and the erosion and re-definition of time honoured relations.
The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat is enhancing the regional Public Education Programme for the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) with a series of communications events beginning in Barbados this week.
Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Immigration Officers will participate in a Train the Trainer Session on 11-12 February at the CARICOM Secretariat, Georgetown, Guyana. This activity is the second phase of a project aimed at training Immigration Officers on issues pertaining to the free movement of persons, a critical component of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy.
Ministers representing Ministries of the Government of Guyana,
Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community,
Members of the Diplomatic Core,
Members of the Business Community,
Representative of Workers Organisations ,
Other Non Governmental Organisations ,
Ladies and gentlemen
Welcome
THE BASIC RATIONALE
Preparations are moving apace at various levels within the Caribbean Community to institutionalize as fast as possible the Single Market and Economy (SME) in this regard, Guyana is no exception.
The target year has been set for sometime before year 2005.
We are a mere two years away from this momentous event which will have a direct and indirect impact on the daily lives of each and every Guyanese. In fact, it would be no wild assertion to state that the Single Market and Economy is "around the corner".
The people of St. Kitts and Nevis recently had another opportunity to learn more about the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) by way of a series of regional educational activities, led by a team from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat.
The team, led by Sheldon McDonald, CCJ Project Co-ordinator for the establishment of the CCJ, began its educational activities, organised by the St. Kitts and Nevis National Co-ordinating Committee for the CCJ with a live radio and television discussion on the broadcast network ZIZ Radio and Television.
The Caribbean Community’s (CARICOM) Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) has urged its Member States to stick to the deadlines for implementation of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).
At its Fourteenth Meeting which ended in Georgetown, Guyana on Saturday, February 1, COTED urged Member States to accelerate the implementation of the key elements of the CSME. The meeting recognised that some Member States were unable to implement decisions due to limited human resources and agreed on steps to assist those who were affected by this limitation.
The Tenth Meeting of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) will focus on crucial issues concerning the establishment of CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) when the week-long officials and ministerial deliberations begin at the Guyana-based CARICOM Secretariat on 8 January, 2001.