Guyana talks structural transformation, economy reopening at UK-Caribbean Forum

Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Todd underscored key resilience-building steps which countries should aim to achieve in order to address global issues.
At the 10th UK-Caribbean Forum earlier this week, Minister Todd highlighted that resilience-building should be at the core of international support, underscoring the need for exceptional measures to restore debt sustainability and address urgent financing gaps.

Minister Todd also referenced the need for vaccines, which he said are an immediate and fundamental step to enable early achievement of herd immunity, which will curb the pandemic, protect citizens and allow for the full reopening of economies. Moreover, he highlighted the key role of structural transformation and access to financing in building resilience over the medium to long term.
The UK-Caribbean Forum is a biennial event, which provides a platform for exchange between Foreign Ministers on bilateral, regional, and global issues. This year’s event focused specifically on climate change, economic resilience, disaster management concerning small island developing states (SIDS), COVID-19 recovery, and immigration, among other areas.
At the conclusion of the forum, the Foreign Ministers of the United Kingdom and Caribbean countries agreed on an Action Plan for a two-year period, up to 2023, when the next full forum meeting is currently envisaged.
This Action Plan is intended to allow for a strategic and sustained approach to the UK-Caribbean relationship, based on ambitious, yet focussed and realistic commitments. It serves as a road map for the practical implementation of the communique and sets out the enhanced commitments of both the UK and Caribbean Forum countries for a renewed and strengthened partnership.
According to a Caricom statement, it was concluded that it is important to act together for mutual benefit and the global common good, based on their many shared values, particularly around the COVID-19 global pandemic and climate change.
Additionally, this Action Plan will remain a standing agenda for review at quarterly meetings between Caribbean High Commissioners based in London and the Minister for the Caribbean at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). Together, they will agree joint action in cases where specific objectives are at risk of not being met.
“The parties recognise that the value of the UK-Caribbean Forum lies in concrete and practical follow-up to commitments made at its meetings. Therefore, the parties will conduct a full audit of achievements against the Action Plan goals after the first year and immediately prior to the next forum,” the statement added.