Caption: Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne has the attention of the delegates as he urges India to help in the Caribbean’s socio-economic development. Photo: CMC
GEORGETOWN, Guyana – Caribbean Community (CARCCOM) leaders on Wednesday said they were seeking further enhanced economic and commercial cooperation with India.
“It is our desire to attract investments from India and to increase direct trade between India and CARICOM,” Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne told the the second India-Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Summit that is being attended by India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.
Browne, speaking on the topic “Strengthening of Economic and Commercial relations between the Caribbean Community and India,” said that India has long been a friend of the region, and further cemented its shared commitment to this partnership during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
“India was the first country to offer assistance to the Community with the provision of vaccines; and provided vaccines when global supplies to the Caribbean were non-existing, because of the hoarding of vaccines by the Global North,” he said, adding “for this, we are eternally grateful and will never forget India’s selfless generosity to our Community during our time of need.”
Browne said that Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the Caribbean comes at a unique period of regional development, where the countries continue to face a range of challenges including high debt and high financing costs; limited access to concessional financing, disproportionate impact from various crises to include wars, climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic.
“These challenges are exacerbated by high inflation and logistics challenges. Sir, you have transformed the Indian economy into the world’s fastest growing large economy. India has overtaken many countries and is poised to become the third-largest economy in the world by 2030; transitioning into an upper middle-income economy. ”
Prime Minister Browne said that this is a significant feat and in this regard, “we are seeking further enhanced economic commercial cooperation with India.
“It is our desire to attract investments from India and to increase direct trade between India & CARICOM. As the Indian economy continues to grow exponentially, its trade surpluses will increase.
“We are hoping that India will adopt a similar philosophy of shared global prosperity like the PRC (People’s Republic of China) and develops a development financing model – to invest a percentage of its surplus in Caribbean economies, to help us to advance the build out of our socio-economic infrastructure. ”
The Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister said that there are many unexploited and underexploited opportunities in tourism, pharmaceuticals manufacturing and procurement, agriculture, renewal energy, innovation, that could be exploited for the mutual benefit of CARICOM member states and India.
He said the enhancement of business-to-business relations between the private sector in the Caribbean with their counterparts in India would facilitate the exploitation of these opportunities for the benefit of CARICOM member states and India.
“We would be pleased if India could host a CARICOM investment forum; perhaps during our next summit to explore trade and investment opportunities. This partnership with our private sectors would enhance relations; facilitate increased investment and trade and accelerate economic growth and resilience.
“Also, we need India’s assistance in capacity building to include human resource capacity building and technology transfer. This could be achieved through scholarships for CARICOM nationals to study in India and exchange programme,” Browne added.
Browne said that the region is looking forward to India’s support for the SIDS centre of excellence in acquiring the necessary technologies, including geospatial and artificial intelligence technologies to assist in closing the data gaps and to enhance the mapping of the region’s terrestrial and marine spaces so as to improve planning and better management of natural assets.
“By so doing, India could help SIDs to monetise their natural assets and to assist them to participate in the carbon pricing markets and pursue debt for nature swaps and other creative value driven initiatives.”
Browne said India can be assured of CARICOM’s continued support, collaboration and corporation in the international fora to include reform of the UN and international financial systems, non proliferation of nuclear armament, climate change, increased multilateralism and candidatures.
He said on the issue of reform of the international financial architecture; CARICOM is soliciting the support of India for the broad use of the multi dimensional vulnerability Index (MVI) as a more inclusive metric to access concessional financing for CARICOM countries, most of which are middle income countries that are excluded from concessional financing, to include much needed ODA assistance, especially during periods of crisis.
“We thank the Republic of India for the assistance that it has extended to CARICOM member states to date, including the concessional climate funding that it has made available through the solar alliance and assistance extended to the Caribbean Development fund,” Browne said, adding “we also look forward to India becoming a contributing member to the Caribbean Development Bank”. (CMC)
