1. CARICOM-CANADA TRADE DEVELOPMENT FORUM
NOVEMBER 2, 2011
DELTA MEADOWVALE HOTEL AND CONVENTION CENTRE, MISSISSAUGA
OPENING CEREMONY
REMARKS DELIVERED BY HIS EXCELLENCY EVELYN GREAVES, HIGH COMMISSIONER OF
BARBADOS ON BEHALF OF THE INCOMING CHAIRMAN OF THE CARICOM MINISTERIAL
COUNCIL FOR TRADE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
SALUTATIONS1
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CANADA AND CARICOM COUNTRIES DATES BACK TO THE
EARLY 18TH CENTURY WHEN THE BRITISH NORTHERN ATLANTIC COLONIES EXCHANGED
FISH, LUMBER AND OTHER STAPLES FOR WEST INDIAN RUM, MOLASSES AND SPICES.
CURRENTLY, OUR TRADE AND ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION RELATIONS ARE COVERED
UNDER A NUMBER OF LEGAL INSTRUMENTS, NAMELY, THE 1979 CARICOM-CANADA TRADE
AND ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AGREEMENT AND ITS PROTOCOLS, INCLUDING THE 1998
PROTOCOL ON RUM; CARIBCAN WHICH GRANTS UNILATERAL DUTY FREE ACCESS TO ELIGIBLE
GOODS FROM BENEFICIARY COUNTRIES IN THE ENGLISH-SPEAKING CARIBBEAN; AND
BILATERAL INVESTMENT TREATIES WITH INDIVIDUAL MEMBER STATES, NAMELY BARBADOS
AND TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO. CANADA ALSO HAS MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING WITH
JAMAICA, TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO, BARBADOS AND THE OECS COUNTRIES, UNDER WHICH
WORKERS ARE SEASONALLY EMPLOYED ON CANADIAN FARMS. IN RECENT YEARS,
HOSPITALITY WORKERS FROM BARBADOS AND A NUMBER OF CARICOM STATES HAVE BEEN
1
DIGNITARIES TO BE IDENTFIED.
1

2. RECRUITED ON A TEMPORARY BASIS TO WORK IN CANADIAN HOSPITALITY SECTORS.
CARICOM CONTINUES TO BE AN IMPORTANT DESTINATION FOR CANADIAN FOREIGN DIRECT
INVESTMENT (FDI) STOCK, ATTRACTING ALMOST 10% OF CANADA’S TOTAL OUTWARD FDI
STOCK AS AT 2009. CARICOM INVESTORS FOUND A HOME IN CANADA FOR CDN$470 MN OF FDI
STOCKS UP TO 2009.
CULTURALLY, THE TIES BETWEEN CARICOM AND CANADA ARE STRONG. IN 2006, IT
WAS ESTIMATED THERE WERE 390,000 RESIDENTS IN CANADA WHO ORIGINATED IN THE 15
CARICOM COUNTRIES. CANADIAN AUTHORS AND ARTISTS CONTINUE TO INFLUENCE THE
CANADIAN CULTURAL LANDSCAPE. CANADA HAS ALSO HAD A GOVERNOR GENERAL OF
HAITIAN HERITAGE, AND MICHAEL LEE CHIN, A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSMAN AND IMMIGRANT
FROM JAMAICA DONATED CAN$30 MILLION TO THE ROYAL ONTARIO MUSEUM IN 2006.
AS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES CONTINUES TO GROW, SO TOO
DOES THE INVOLVEMENT AT THE POLITICAL LEVEL. I AM PLEASED TO REPORT THAT
CARICOM HEADS OF MISSION IN OTTAWA HAVE BEEN ENGAGING ON SEVERAL FRONTS WITH
THE POLITICAL DIRECTORATE IN THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS REALMS. MEETINGS HAVE BEEN
HELD WITH THE HON. DIANE ABLONCZY, MINISTER OF STATE OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
(AMERICAS AND CONSULAR AFFAIRS). CARICOM HEADS OF MISSION ARE ALSO SCHEDULED TO
MEET WITH THE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, THE HON. JOHN BAIRD ON NOVEMBER 30.
CARICOM RECOGNISES THE IMPORTANCE OF THE CURRENT CARIBCAN ARRANGEMENT.
OUR MERCHANDISE EXPORT TRADE TO CANADA
HAS INCREASED ANNUALLY BY 14.9 PERCENT, GROWING FROM US$400MN IN 1999 TO OVER
US$1.4BN IN 2009. CARICOM EXPORTS BENEFIT FROM DUTY FREE TARIFF TREATMENT UNDER
CARIBCAN ACROSS ALL PRODUCT CATEGORIES EXCEPT TEXTILES, CLOTHING AND LEATHER.
2

3. AT THE SAME TIME, WE RECOGNIZE, THAT CURRENT NON-RECIPROCAL PREFERENTIAL
PROGRAMMES SUCH AS CARIBCAN AND THE GENERALISED PREFERENTIAL TARIFF (GPT) DO
NOT PROVIDE AN ADEQUATE AND SECURE FOUNDATION ON WHICH TO ANCHOR THE REGION’S
FUTURE TRADE AND ECONOMIC RELATIONS WITH CANADA.
ALTHOUGH CARIBCAN PREFERENCES HAVE BEEN EXTENDED UNDER A NEW WTO
WAIVER UNTIL DECEMBER 30, 2011, THE REGION’S CONTINUED ENJOYMENT OF THE
PREFERENCES IS TIME BOUND. THE CHANGING INTERNATIONAL TRADING ENVIRONMENT AS
TYPIFIED BY DEVELOPMENTS IN THE WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION (WTO), PROVIDE STRONG
MOTIVATION TO LOCK-IN THE EXISTING PREFERENCES AND PREFERENTIAL MARGINS IN A
NEW TRADE ARRANGEMENT WHICH PROVIDES LONG TERM SECURITY AND PREDICTABILITY
FOR TRADERS AND INVESTORS. FURTHER, CARIBCAN’S COVERAGE IS LIMITED TO TRADE IN
GOODS AND DOES NOT EXTEND TO TRADE IN SERVICES, WHICH IS OF INCREASING
IMPORTANCE TO CARICOM ECONOMIES.
FURTHER, A MORE MATURE TRADE AGREEMENT WITH CANADA WILL ALSO EMBRACE
HAITI AND SURINAME WHICH ARE CURRENTLY EXCLUDED FROM THE CARIBCAN BENEFITS.
ADDITIONAL BENEFITS ANTICIPATED INCLUDE PROVISIONS TO STRENGTHEN TRADE
FACILITATION; INNOVATION; ELECTRONIC COMMERCE; COMPETITION POLICY; AND
TRANSPARENCY IN GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT. ALSO, FOR THE FIRST TIME, THE REGION
WILL NEGOTIATE COMPREHENSIVE INVESTMENT PROMOTION AND PROTECTION PROVISIONS
GEARED TOWARDS ATTRACTING INVESTMENTS WHICH CONTRIBUTE TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT .
IF WE ARE INDEED SERIOUS ABOUT EXPLOITING COMMERCIAL OPPORTUNITIES WITH
CANADA, WE CANNOT AFFORD LESS COMPETITIVE AND LEGALLY UNCERTAIN TERMS OF
3

4. TRADE RELATIVE TO OTHER ECONOMIES SUCH AS PERU, COLOMBIA, PANAMA, THE
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, HONDURAS, COSTA RICA AND CHILE WHO HAVE EITHER COMPLETED
FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS (FTAS) WITH CANADA, OR ARE AT AN ADVANCED STAGE OF SUCH
PURSUITS.
AT THE SAME TIME, A SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENT DIMENSION IS CRITICAL IF CARICOM
IS TO MAXIMISE THE BENEFITS FROM A MORE MATURE TRADING ARRANGEMENT WITH
CANADA. CARICOM COUNTRIES ARE UNDERTAKING THE CHALLENGING TASK OF
RESTRUCTURING THEIR ECONOMIES FROM POST COLONIAL MODELS, TO CENTRES OF
INNOVATION AND VALUE CREATION.
CARICOM HEADS OF GOVERNMENT HAD PROPOSED TO THEIR CANADIAN
COUNTERPART THE NEGOTIATION OF A “MORE MATURE TRADING RELATIONSHIP WHICH
BUILDS ON, AND ENHANCES, EXISTING ARRANGEMENTS AND FULFILS THE OBJECTIVE OF THE
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF CARICOM COUNTRIES.” IT IS OUR VIEW THAT AN AGREEMENT
BETWEEN CARICOM AND CANADA MUST BE GUIDED BY THE PRINCIPLE OF ASYMMETRY
WHICH RECOGNIZES, AND APPROPRIATELY RESPONDS TO DIFFERENCES IN THE LEVEL OF
DEVELOPMENT BETWEEN CARICOM AND CANADA ON THE ONE HAND, AS WELL AS AMONG
CARICOM COUNTRIES. I PAUSE TO APPRECIATE THIS POINT AS MADE BY MINISTER ABLONCZY
IN HER REMARKS.
FOR US TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OPPORTUNITIES CREATED BY THE AGREEMENT,
MEASURES TO SUPPORT CAPACITY BUILDING AND ENHANCING COMPETITIVENESS, WHILE
MINIMISING THE ADVERSE EFFECTS OF TRADE LIBERALISATION ARE NECESSARY.
4

5. WE WELCOME CANADA’S COMMITMENT TO SUPPORT CAPACITY-BUILDING ASSOCIATED
WITH THE AGREEMENT AND OTHER AREAS OF CARICOM’S DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIES IN THE
FORM OF CAN$600 MILLION TO BE UTILISED OVER 10 YEARS. THIS PLEDGE WAS MADE BY
PRIME MINISTER HARPER WHEN HE MET WITH CARICOM HEADS OF GOVERNMENT IN JULY
2007. IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT THE NEW TRADE ARRANGEMENT IS SUCCESSFUL, CARICOM
HAS PROPOSED A NUMBER OF AREAS FOR COOPERATION.
ALL OUR ECONOMIES ARE FACING A CHALLENGING GLOBAL OUTLOOK WHICH SPEAKS
TO THE NEED TO RELEASE OUR CREATIVE POTENTIAL AND TO RECOGNISE THAT IT CANNOT
BE BUSINESS AS USUAL. CARICOM’S FUTURE LIES IN DEVELOPING COOPERATION INITIATIVES
AND PARTNERSHIPS TO GENERATE INVESTMENT IN STRATEGIC AREAS SUCH AS INNOVATION
DEVELOPMENT/COMMERCIALISATION, TRANSPORTATION, AND INFRASTRUCTURE. AS MICRO-
ECONOMIES THERE WILL ALWAYS BE A ROLE FOR COOPERATION IN TRADE ARRANGEMENTS
WITH MORE DEVELOPED PARTNERS.
WE RECOGNISE THE NEED TO EMBRACE INNOVATION DRIVEN COMPETITIVENESS. WE
BELIEVE THAT THE CONTINUED DEVELOPMENT OF INNOVATION CAN CULTIVATE AND
TRANSFORM ENTREPRENEURSHIP, FORGE NEW INDUSTRY, HELP MAXIMIZE EXPORT
OPPORTUNITIES, CREATE JOBS AND IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF OUR CITIZENS. WE SEE
A MORE MATURE TRADE ARRANGEMENT WITH CANADA SUPPORTING THIS DEVELOPMENTAL
GOAL.
THIS FORUM IS AIMED AT FACILITATING BUSINESS MATCHMAKING AND POLICY
ADVOCACY TO IDENTIFY SPECIFIC TYPES OF PROVISIONS NEEDED TO REALISE MEANINGFUL
BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES. THERE ARE A HOST OF FORESEEABLE BUSINESS POSSIBILITIES FOR
BOTH SERVICES PROVIDERS AND GOODS PRODUCERS THAT COULD BE FACILITATED BY A NEW
5

6. AGREEMENT WHICH HAS BENEFITTED FROM THE CLEARLY ARTICULATED VIEWS OF THE
PRIVATE SECTORS OF CARICOM AND CANADA. THERE ARE ALSO IMMEDIATE OPPORTUNITIES
WHICH THE HOLDING OF THE PAN AM GAMES IN TORONTO SCHEDULED FOR JULY 10-26, 2015
MAY PROVIDE.
I LOOK FORWARD TO RECOMMENDATIONS WHICH WILL EMANATE FROM YOUR
DISCUSSIONS.
LET ME, IN CLOSING, WARMLY THANK ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE TAKEN TIME FROM YOUR
BUSY SCHEDULES AND AGENDAS TO BE HERE. LET ME ALSO THANK THE GOVERNMENTS OF
CANADA THROUGH THE CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY, AND THE
EUROPEAN UNION THROUGH THE CARIBBEAN EXPORT DEVELOPMENT AGENCY, WHO HAVE
GRACIOUSLY PROVIDED RESOURCES TOWARDS THE HOSTING OF THIS FORUM.
I WISH YOU SUCCESSFUL DELIBERATIONS, THANK YOU.
END
6