(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) The government of Spain has strengthened its cooperation with the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) through a renewed commitment to support the operations of CARICOM Representation Office in Haiti (CROH) and the work of the Community in Haiti.

In a Technical Assistance agreement forged recently between CARICOM and the Government of Spain, the Spanish government has given a commitment to sustain the CROH, under the CARICOM/Spain Regional Cooperation Programme.

This funding, directed through the Spanish government’s cooperation arm, the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), will support the administrative operations and programme activities to undertaken by the CROH from October to December 2011.

Since the re-establishment of the CROH in 2007, Spain has been a consistent development partner in assisting CARICOM in the development of institutional and human capacity in Haiti.

The CROH functions as a key mechanism in Haiti’s integration into the CSME. Just as Haiti was about to make a significant step towards integration into the CSME, the 12 January 2010 struck with cataclysmic consequences, as its accession to the Single Market having been scheduled for that very month. In the destruction of the physical infrastructure, the country also lost many of its senior public servants, including those with responsibility for the implementation of the CSME.

With Haiti’s capacity to manage the processes required for CSME readiness greatly diminished as a result of the earthquake, the Caribbean Community has intensified its efforts to maintain an active and meaningful presence in Haiti. Spain has played an integral role in this regard, supporting of the participation of Haitian officials in meetings of the Community, allowing the government to be represented in decision-making fora during that critical period that followed the earthquake.

Since the January 2010 earthquake, the CARICOM Representation Office in Haiti has not only been called on to continue its work to facilitate Haiti’s readiness to function within the CSME, but also to function as a coordination hub for the Community’s contribution to the country’s recovery and reconstruction efforts.

CONTACT: piu@caricom.org
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