From left: Lt. Col. Michael Jones, Acting Executive Director of CARICOM IMPACS; Daniel Best, Director Projects Department, Caribbean Development Bank and Luis Maia, Head Cooperation at the Delegation of the EU to Barbados, the Eastern Caribbean States, the OECS and CARICOM/CARIFORUM after yesterday’s launch.
Working together vital
The challenges faced this year have highlighted the importance of closer integration and collaboration to help ensure that fragile regional economies can more effectively absorb and rebound from external shocks.
So says Director of Projects at the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), Daniel Best. Speaking during the virtual launch of the Establishment of Integrated Border Systems for the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Project, which is financed by 11th European Development Fund under the CARIFORUM-EU Economic Partnership Agreement and the CARICOM Single Market and Economy Standby Facility for Capacity Building, managed by the CDB.
Best told those viewing online, that global projections by the International Monetary Fund tell of a protracted, uncertain and uneven recovery beyond 2021. Referring to the latest IMF World Economic Outlook growth projection for 2020, he said it is estimated that there will be -8.1 percent growth for Latin America and the Caribbean. He stated that in spite of a slight recovery, output in developing and emerging economies is predicted to remain below 2019 levels well into 2021, as he added that growing restrictions on trade could further exacerbate any rebound.
“Regionally, we are faced with not only currency volatility, depleting foreign reserves and limited fiscal resources. We must also manage the vagaries of increasingly unpredictable weather systems brought about by climate change, which wreak havoc on our populations, infrastructure and economies. Our responses to these circumstances and a potentially catastrophic long-term crisis must be balanced and include effective policies to ultimately protect and sustain lives and livelihoods,” he indicated.
He continued, “Trade, the Standby Facility’s focus therefore, can be a deciding factor, and remains of great significance to regional governments as they search for and create new economic opportunities within CARIFORUM and beyond”.
To that end, he maintained that alleviating systemic barriers to trade and promoting trade facilitation is vital at this time. Best indicated then that activities which streamline and enhance the efficiency of trade related procedures are essential.
“Our import and export dependent economies and small production base make intra and extra regional trade an imperative. This project responds to that actuality and in addition, supports the fulfilment of international commitments of OECS member countries, specifically the World Trade Organisation Trade Facilitation Agreement and the International Maritime Organisation Convention on the Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic, more commonly known as the FAL Convention,” he stated.
He went on to say that beyond satisfying those obligations, the OECS member states are being positioned to positively impact their performance on specific indicators assessed in the global competitiveness rankings - namely trading across borders. He indicated that even though the OECS countries have performed well in the areas of documentary and border compliance when compared to the wider CARICOM, there are gaps which can be impacted by the project through standardisation and systems integration. (JRT)