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St. Kitts - Nevis’ PM - Denzil Douglas
Photo By Erasmus Williams

Basseterre, St. Kitts - Nevis
March 11, 2010 (CUOPM)

St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas has accused unnamed members of the international community of keeping the Caribbean out of plans for the redevelopment and reconstruction of earthquake ravaged Haiti.

Prime Minister Douglas, who is among Caribbean leaders now meeting in Dominica at the 21st CARICOM Inter-Sessional said the Haiti situation is on the agenda and he does not like the situation in the French-speaking Caribbean Republic.

He said CARICOM countries have done exceptionally well in terms of going into Haiti first and Jamaica must be commended and congratulated for is stance and the work it has done and the service its men have provided.

“We have a plan for Haiti. We want to emphasise to the international community that we cannot be kept out. There seems to be some plan afoot for those who are dealing with Haiti to simply “diss” the Caribbean. CARICOM cannot be excluded from the solutions and the long-term development of Haiti. Haiti has a capacity within CARICOM,” said Prime Minister Douglas in a telephone interview with Caribbean Broadcaster Lennox Linton on Journeys the popular early morning Talk Show on St. Kitts. Sugar City Roc Thursday morning.

Dr. Douglas said that CARIVOM can provide the voice that Haiti in itself does not have and there is the capacity and the expertise in CARICOM.

“We understand what it means to go through disaster situations and Haiti is seen as a member of the Caribbean Community and CARICOM wants to use this Inter-Sessional to impress upon the minds of those who are leading the international financial institutions that the Caribbean Community has a voice on behalf of Haiti and nothing should take place in terms of Haiti’s future development unless we are at the centre of those activity,” Prime Minister Douglas said.

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CARICOM Meeting To Be Held In Dominica

Basseterre, St. Kitts - Nevis
March 11, 2010 (CUOPM)

St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas is leading the Federal delegation to the 21st Inter-Sessional Meeting of Caribbean Heads of Government in Dominica.

Dr. Douglas is accompanied by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Astona Browne and Foreign Service Officer in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Nyian Farrell.

The issue is expected to dominate discussions with the President of the World Bank, Mr. Robert Zoellick, along with the President of the Inter American Development Bank (IDB), Mr. Luis Alberto Moreno, and the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Mr. Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who have been specially invited to take part in the Roseau deliberations.

Amid the ongoing global economic and financial crisis that has adversely affected the entire 15-nation grouping, CARICOM Secretary General Mr. Edwin Carrington is hopeful that the talks will result in the identification of new and viable approaches to the treatment of economic matters, including the crippling debt burden being carried by those member states, which do not now qualify for concessionary debt reduction following their graduation from middle income status.

The status of implementation of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) is also among the main items on the Dominica agenda, as well as CARICOM’s continued support to Haiti that was devastated by a powerful earthquake on January 12, killing more than 300,000 people and leaving more than one million others homeless.

Haiti’s President His Excellency Rene Preval, who met with United States President Hon. Barack Obama in Washington on Wednesday,  is expected to join in those discussions on Friday.

The leaders will also zero in on the negotiations for a CARICOM-Canada Trade and Development Agreement; the status of implementation of the CARIFORUM-EC Economic Partnership Agreement and the renewal of the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act.

Consideration will also be given to climate change in the context of the region’s follow-up action to the Copenhagen Summit held last December, as well as preparations for upcoming summits, including a CARICOM-Brazil Summit in April.

However, at least five leaders are expected to miss out on the deliberations, namely the Prime Ministers of Belize, Trinidad and Tobago and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, as well as the President of Suriname and the Chief Minister of Montserrat even though no official reason has yet been given for their absence.

Related posts:

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2. St. Kitts - Nevis U.N. Ambassador Leads Federation’s Delegation To CARICOM meeting
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World Bank President - Mr. Robert Zoellick

Basseterre, St. Kitts - Nevis
March 04, 2010 (CUOPM)

St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas and his colleagues from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) will seek to articulate its positions on the major challenges it faced when it holds discussion with the President of the World Bank at the Twenty-First Inter-Sessional Meeting in Dominica from 11th to 12th.

CARICOM Secretary-General, His Excellency Edwin Carrington, stated in his address at the Opening Ceremony of the Fourteenth Meeting of the Council of Finance and Planning (COFAP) in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, earlier this week, that he was expectant that discussions between CARICOM Heads of Government and World Bank President Mr. Robert B. Zoellick would “result in the identification of new and viable approaches to the treatment of some of the major challenges facing our Region.”

Dr. Carrington said that the financing of mitigation and adaptation measures with regard to climate change was one such challenge the Community would highlight. But, perhaps the most pressing issue, was the “crippling debt burden” of those Member States which were accorded middle income status and due to their graduation, did not qualify for concessionary debt reduction.

“This is one form of graduation that we do not embrace and have no role in its determinations. We are in a category of those who bear their fair share of the burdens without contributing equally to the cause,” the Secretary-General said. He stated that these were reasons why the Region must seek to have a voice in the major new structures influencing global decision-making such as the Group of 20 (G20) and the Davos Forum.

In this regard, the Secretary-General noted that the Community could only succeed through “determined united regional action.”

Representatives of the World Bank met with CARICOM Finance Ministers in Trinidad and Tobago on Monday as part of the preparations for the discussions which will take place between CARICOM Heads of Government and the President of the World Bank at the Twenty-First Inter-Sessional Meeting in Dominica.

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4. Nevis Signs Protocol At CARICOM Inter-Sessional
5. CARICOM To Give Special Attention To Tourism And Crime