USVI seeks more collaborative efforts with CARICOM

The USVI and the 15-member Caribbean Community (CARICOM) are continuing efforts for more collaboration and advanced partnership between the two parties. This is according to a recent report coming from a meeting, which included the USVI Governor, Albert Bryan, Jr., Teri Helenese, director of State-Federal Relations, and Washington’s Representative for the USVI, and Elizabeth Solomon, CARICOM’s Assistant Secretary-General for Foreign and Community Relations and her team.

This new development is significant and comes out of a previously functional framework working towards a technical cooperation agreement. Governor Albert Bryan Jr. in expressing his optimism about the potential of this enhanced relationship and regional cooperation to tackle shared challenges, said the USVI is uniquely positioned to be an integral part of CARICOM.

Governor Bryan said the advanced partnership will soon be formalized, through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which aims to benefit the USVI, and the regional integration grouping.

In highlighting some objectives for the work, the governor said the USVI’s commitment to key development strategies under the enhanced partnership, include the prioritizing of the energy crisis as significant, and noted that it should be a focus on sustainable solutions, cost reduction, and building resilient infrastructure. “To that end we look forward to the formal agreement of the Memorandum of Understanding and working collaboratively and in solidarity within CARICOM,” said the USVI Governor.

The partnership aims also to foster a blue economy by sustainably utilizing ocean resources to drive economic growth while preserving ecosystems. In addition, Governor Bryan stated also that bolstering agriculture through CARICOM’s expertise will enhance food security, promote sustainable farming practices, and create economic opportunities.

In discussing the tourism sector, the governor said the inclusion of a tourism expansion should demonstrate medical tourism, sports, and overnight stays, this he stated will further solidify regional connections and advantages.

Another area of the new collaboration and partnership agreement addressed by the governor is the leveraging of regional migration and developing policies to facilitate regional employment exchange and ensure job security. This would implement a labor-management information system to optimize labor resource allocation and resilience as well as promoting educational initiatives at the University of the Virgin Island.

Adding to the new partnership agreement will be plans to enhance intra-regional trade through direct air and sea links, citizens up-skilling, and the development of e-commerce opportunities. Helenese noted that while associate membership with the intergovernmental organization is the ultimate goal, achieving it is challenging due to the USVI’s status as a United States territory, which requires specific authorization from the White House.

She nevertheless sees the cooperation model as a critical steppingstone to associate membership.

As this new collaboration develops between the USVI and CARICOM, the Caribbean Life newspaper spoke to Keone Adams, Special Caribbean Advisory Council, to New York City’s Mayor, Eric Adams and a native of the USVI.

The Special Caribbean Advisory Council noted that the enhanced partnership and the decision for the new effort is a welcoming one with opportunities for growth and expansion for the region. However, “Each island may have its own governing body, and some are still colonies of Great Britain and the United States, so uniting may have issues. Nonetheless, the effort for collaboration and to strengthen the region for growth and expansion as it relates to climate change and the continued treat of disastrous hurricanes are also ways CARICOM and the USVI could enhance their partnership,” Keone Adams emphasized.