The 46th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Caricom Heads of Government is set to open today (Sunday, February 25, 2024) at the National Cultural Centre in Georgetown.
This year’s meeting, which will run from February 25-28, will be convened under the Chairmanship of President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, who will provide the feature address at the opening ceremony.
Dr. Carla Barnett, Caricom Secretary-General, and Roosevelt Skerrit, outgoing Chairman of Caricom and Prime Minister of Dominica, will also address the gathering.
Starting on Monday, the Heads of Government will come together for a series of business meetings at the Marriott Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown, where several topics will take centre stage. These include the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME), climate change, regional security, and other issues within the realm of regional development.
President Ali is also the lead Head of Government with responsibility for agriculture, agricultural diversification and food security in the Caricom Quasi Cabinet. As such, agriculture and food and nutrition security are key issues that would also be discussed.
Already, Heads of Government have begun to arrive in Guyana for the meetings. Prime Minister of St Kitts and Nevis, Terrence Drew, arrived with his delegation this morning. He was greeted by Minister within the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, Anand Persaud.
In his New Year’s address as Chairman, President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali said this year will see advancements in improving regional transportation as well as seeking reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy services to pilot further innovation in the agriculture sector.
“Ensuring our Region’s food and nutrition security continues to be at the forefront of our endeavours. Despite adverse challenges, including climate change, Caricom Member States have made steady progress towards achieving our ‘25% by 2025’ target to reduce the Region’s food import bill. We will build on these achievements, including advancing our regional agenda for energy services that are available, reliable, affordable and sustainable to support expected innovations in the agriculture sector. Crucial to this initiative is the need to improve regional transportation, and this will remain as one of our top priorities,” the Guyanese leader has said.
