Caribbean Community (Caricom) Secretary-General Irwin LaRocque has asked India to be an advocate for the community in international fora to highlight the damaging effects of the graduation of small, highly-indebted member states away from access to international development assistance on a concessional basis.
A release from the Caricom Secretariat said that the Secretary-General made the appeal for India’s support as he accepted the credentials of the new Plenipotentiary Representative of India to Caricom, Puran Mal Meena, at the Secretariat.
LaRocque pointed out that the community had made tremendous strides in promoting economic and social development, but the impact of the recent global and financial crises had affected that thrust.
He is quoted as saying, “We are confident that with India’s status and standing in the world it would be able to support the Caricom region in its developmental efforts generally, and on this issue in particular by advocating on our behalf so that the international community could take the unique vulnerabilities of Caricom states into account.”
He underscored the strong historical, social, cultural and economic ties between the region and India; and said that he looked forward to a strengthened Caricom-India partnership in all its dimensions.
The release said the Secretary-General specifically referred to the cooperation initiatives at the regional level through the Caricom-India Joint Commission- established in 2003 – in areas that include: trade, economic development, health and the environment, scientific and technical development, and
co-operation at the international level.
He highlighted that climate change was also of importance to the community and should be integral to future cooperation discussions.
LaRocque also referred to the increased interest Indian investors had shown in the region, and the region’s steadily increasing trade with India.
The Secretary-General recommended that the Joint Commission should be convened as soon as possible to map out areas for cooperation in the short and long term as the potential benefits of such cooperation are highly anticipated.
