(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) It was a long flight, a tough journey to China, but for CARICOM Secretary-General His Excellency Edwin Carrington, the all too brief visit to Expo 2010 in Shanghai was worth it and he would do it all again.

“Let me put it this way, if I had to do it again, I’d say `when? Let’s go,” the Secretary-General said Monday, shortly before leaving Expo City. “Believe me it is an experience and an occasion which is unforgettable. I had been to Shanghai for the commencement of the process when we had to sign up the documentation and so forth, and I wondered how it was going to be. They had outlined that it was going to be perhaps the greatest show on earth; they expected some 70 million people over the six months and a host of expectations. None of them that I’ve seen so far was what was expected. They’ve gone beyond that!” he exclaimed

While the visits to the Pavilions and booths and his engagements on the fringes of the Exposition were exciting in their own right, the icing on the cake was the CARICOM Pavilion which, through its music, in particular, attracted large crowds, especially young people, and presented a vision of strength in togetherness.

The CARICOM Pavilion with its 14 booths, including one shared by the CARICOM Secretariat and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), attracts an estimated 50,000 persons each day. About half a million persons attend Expoland each day. More than 200 countries and international organizations are participating in the Exposition under the theme `Better City, Better Life.’

“…one Pavilion but fourteen booths. Each booth had that individuality and yet the Pavilion hung together as an effective unit and it conveyed that: one Caribbean, one Community, one pavilion, fourteen booths. All those who visit, whether from the Caribbean as well as from the rest of the world, should leave with a picture, an image, of how together we are stronger, and yet we have not lost our individuality,” Secretary-General Carrington said.

The life of the Exposition, he said, was circulating around the CARICOM Pavilion because of “our music, our human activity.”

Reggae, ragga soca and steelpan music vie for supremacy in the Pavilion, and Caribbean performances, including those by Trinidad and Tobago steel orchestra, Exodus, are a major pull factor for the throngs of visitors. The booths themselves creatively showcase, in the main, the history, culture and economic activities of Member States.

“Wherever you are, you hear the music and you see the people, and interestingly the young people. That is where they are getting together, dancing in their own way to our music. There they are, having a good time around the Caribbean,” Mr. Carrington said with pride.

A wonderful experience

Alluding to CARICOM’s unique position at the Exposition, the Secretary-General said he had seen no other integration movement of developing countries represented at the event.

“So I’m taking back to CARICOM not just `Better City, Better Life’, but `Better Together, Better Life’, Mr Carrington said.

The Secretary-General described the CARICOM National Honour Day celebrations as a “wonderful experience” and hailed the “excellent statement” made by President of Guyana, His Excellency Bharrat Jagdeo, Head of the CARICOM delegation to the Exposition. He acknowledged the presence of President of Dominica, His Excellency Nicholas Liverpool, Grenada Prime Minister, the Honourable Tillman Thomas and the Ministerial representation from across the Community.

“The CARICOM turn out, the CARICOM performance, the CARICOM show in Shanghai was something that I think would make all of us proud. We have a lot to be thankful for; we have a lot to convey to the people of the Caribbean..,” he said.

He added that “what opened the gate to the whole thing was the launch of the book” by Ms. Lisa Sankar-Zhu, a Caribbean author residing in China. Secretary-General Carrington spoke at the launch of the children’s book – The Emperor, His Bride and the Dragon Robe - at the CARICOM Pavilion on 16 July.

“That book I think probably symbolically pointed the way forward,” he said.

Secretary-General Carrington was warmly welcomed at other Pavilions and booths including those of Cuba, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, South Africa, Spain and the United Nations.

He played a special role as guest speaker at the South Africa booth’s Mandela Day observances on July 18.

“Not only were we invited to attend, but to speak as well. And I had to say if I’m asked to speak on Mandela’s life, there were so many aspects about his life for which I am proud. I don’t think I was lost for words at any time. I had a deep sense of emotive appreciation and recollection of the 1998 visit he paid to our CARICOM Heads of Government meeting and the time I was able to speak with him. He is a remarkable human being,” said the Secretary-General.

CONTACT: piu@caricom.org