GEORGETOWN, Guyana, February 26, 2024 – Although Caribbean leaders have been pursuing massive investments and programmes to achieve regional food-security goals, trade barriers among some Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member states remain a hindrance to the movement of produce across the region, The Guyana Chronicle reported today.
In addressing this issue head on, Chairman of CARICOM and Guyana’s President, Dr. Irfaan Ali on Sunday sounded a call for the people of the Caribbean to hold their respective leaders accountable and address the existing barriers.
“We are continuing work to address the removal of trade barriers within member states and the people of CARICOM must put pressure on the leaders of CARICOM to remove the trade barriers. It is of no use and purpose for this region,” Dr. Ali said, during his address at the opening ceremony of the 46th Regular Meeting of the Conference of CARICOM Heads of Government held at the National Cultural Centre, on Sunday.
Trade barriers include any regulation or policy that restricts trade, especially tariffs, quotas and licences, among other things.
The importance of addressing this issue is amplified by ongoing efforts of the Caribbean leaders to slash the region’s exorbitant food-import bill by 25 per cent in the next year.
Guyana has been leading the charge for food security, with President Ali holding the responsibility for food security and agriculture, while the country’s Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha is the chairperson for CARICOM’s Ministerial Task Force on Agriculture.
Guyana has been steadily increasing its food production and expanding the cultivation of new crops such as corn, soybeans, and wheat to meet the demands of not only its domestic market, but also the entire region.
“People of this region, call upon your leaders to remove these barriers. Let them hear you loudly, these barriers need to go and must go urgently,” President Ali stressed.
Although these barriers exist, food trade among CARICOM nations have increased, with ongoing partnerships such as the black belly sheep project in Guyana, the expansion of shade houses in Barbados, and the further expansion of rice cultivation in Trinidad and Tobago, all aimed at assisting the region to meet its’25 by 25’ target.
A NEW TARGET: ELIMINATE MALNUTRITION, HUNGER BY 2030
While heavy focus is being placed on increasing the region’s food production, President Ali highlighted the need for a new target to be set within the realms of food security: this is eliminating the region’s malnutrition and hunger rates by 2030.
“We are proposing to bring together the human assets that this region nurtured into international pain to bring their goodwill together as ambassadors to mobilise international financing of support, so that we can end hunger and malnutrition in this region,” Dr. Ali said.
According to statistics provided by the Head of State, roughly 57 per cent of the region’s population is affected by food insecurity.
In fact, these figures, according to President Ali, show “a significant rise” when compared to figures from February 2020
“This is an alarming number… [we] must now focus on ending hunger and malnutrition by 2030,” he added.
Over the next few days, leaders from all 15 member states will converge in Georgetown, Guyana, for crucial discussions.
According to CARICOM, there will be discussions on climate change and climate financing; regional security, including the situation in Haiti and border issues; regional transportation; financial matters, including replenishment of the CARICOM Development Fund (CDF); global and hemispheric issues, including developments in the Middle East; Reparations; and the 2024 ICC Men’s T-20 Cricket World Cup will be discussed over the next three days.
