INCOMING Caricom chairman, Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne, has said Caricom must use lessons taught by the covid19 pandemic to become more resilient as it charts its way towards the post-pandemic period.
Browne expressed this view at the virtual opening ceremony for the two-day 42nd Caricom Heads of Government Meeting.
He thanked outgoing chairman Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley for "his tireless efforts" to guide the region during his term.
Browne praised Rowley's "persistent efforts in pursuit of life-saving vaccines for the region, which have borne some fruit."
He agreed with Rowley that Caricom solidarity was clearly demonstrated by the efforts of member states to acquire covid19 vaccines and share surplus vaccines amongst themselves.
Browne thanked the US, India and China for their donations of vaccines to the region.
As Caricom countries continue to receive more vaccines, Browne said lingering vaccine hesitancy in any member state must be erased.
"I urge those who are reluctant to take the jab to think again. I appeal to your better nature and appreciation of the well-being of yourself, your family and fellow citizens."
"No one is safe until everyone is safe."
Browne said efforts to combat the health threat of covid19 "must be translated to the economic sphere, so that we will not only survive this test but thrive and grow strongly."
Acquiring enough vaccines, he said, was only part of the equation. The other side was "to ensure that a sufficient number of our citizens are inoculated so that our countries could gain herd immunity."
With many Caricom countries having tourism as their economic mainstay, Browne said no member state should be banning air travel from another member state which has covid19 cases while encouraging air travel from external countries with a greater covid19 risk.
He said initiatives such as reduced travel taxes should be considered to encourage more air travel back to the region.
But Browne said covid19 has also alerted the region to the danger that overdependence on tourism poses to its economic well-being. This, he said, is why one of the meeting's important agenda items is economic diversification, particularly with respect to agriculture,
"We need to accelerate these efforts in strengthening the sector."
He endorsed Rowley's point about strengthening efforts to advance the Caricom Single Market and Economy. There is a protocol that leaders will discuss at the meeting, he said, which would allow member states which are more advanced in their CSME efforts to press on with their initiatives, rather than the region collectively "kicking the can down the road" until all member states are ready.
Browne also expressed concern that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)'s minimum global corporate tax rate agreement could "remove our flexibility as sovereign nations to adopt tax policies that best suit our circumstances."
TT and Antigua and Barbuda were among the 130 countries that signed on
