(Caribbean Community Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) Your Excellency, It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the Headquarters of the Caribbean Community. Allow me to also welcome the distinguished delegation from the Embassy of Japan in Port-of-Spain and Mrs. Tezuka to this beautiful building which is tangible evidence of the excellent relations between CARICOM and Japan, and of the valuable contribution that Japan has made and continues to make to the Community.

Japan’s generous contribution to the construction of this building is very much appreciated and, back in 2005, when we formally opened the building, we were graced with the presence of Ambassador Tatsuo Arima, Special Envoy of the Government of Japan.

Excellency, all here would agree that the longstanding relations forged between CARICOM and Japan continue to grow from strength to strength. It has been nearly two decades since CARICOM and Japan formally commenced relations in 1993. Since that time, two High-Level Meetings at the Ministerial level have been held and fourteen consultations between the senior officials of our countries have taken place to discuss technical cooperation and economic and political matters of common interest.

The Second CARICOM-Japan Ministerial Conference in September 2010 marked a high point in our relationship as this encounter gave new impetus to our relations with the revision of the Framework for Japan-CARICOM Cooperation for the Twenty-First Century. The document outlined a number of political, economic and social areas for collaboration.

The wide gamut of issues and undertakings contained within this New Framework speaks to CARICOM’s and Japan’s mutual commitment to development and testifies to the ever widening breadth of our common interests and cooperation. Excellency, a number of commitments were made by both sides, and we look forward to your assistance in ensuring that these commitments are fulfilled for the mutual benefit of our countries.

We also look forward to the upcoming Fifteenth CARICOM-Japan Consultation to be convened on 23 July 2012 here at the CARICOM Secretariat. The Consultation will be an opportune time to review the progress of our political engagement, cooperation in international fora, and technical cooperation activities, particularly within the context of the New Framework.

Beyond our Ministerial and Consultation Meetings, CARICOM and Japan continuously engage at various levels. For example, since 2001 countries of the Region have been pursuing technical cooperation programmes with Japan through the mechanisms of the Japan-CARICOM Friendship and Cooperation Fund (JCFCF) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The Community is deeply appreciative of this cooperation under the auspices of which more than 35 projects have been implemented in a wide range of thematic areas.

Cooperation between CARICOM and Japan in the international arena has also been advancing steadily. CARICOM and Japan, for instance, share similar concerns with respect to reform of the United Nations which we both believe must be conducted with a view always to ensuring increased transparency and efficiency, equitable representation and the consolidation of the high ideal of multilateralism to which global society aspires.

Excellency, amongst the important issues on which we continue to exchange views is the fundamental issue of Climate Change. This global phenomenon, and all its challenges – drought, flooding and hurricanes, coastal erosion and sea-level rise – constitute, not an abstract, scientific concept for the Small Islands and Low-Lying coastal countries of the Caribbean Community, but a very real and increasingly threatening reality. To us, it is a question of survival.

Of course, I do not have to expound on the effects of such natural events to Japan, given the devastating impact of the 2011 tsunami and the nuclear crisis spawned by the most powerful earthquake in Japan’s recorded history. Disasters of this magnitude, triggering tsunami warnings across the entire Pacific, underscore the importance of like-minded states collaborating in disaster mitigation and preparedness. In this vital area of disaster management, the Government of Japan’s assistance in the area of flood hazard mapping and Community-based disaster planning has been invaluable and I wish to take this opportunity to express the Region’s gratitude for this support. We look forward to expanding our cooperation in this critical area.

The Community also wishes to reiterate its appreciation to Japan for its ongoing support for Haiti – a CARICOM Member State, itself ravaged by a destructive earthquake in 2010. As a Community, CARICOM has rallied behind this Member State and Japan has generously accompanied us with financial, technical and other support.

Excellency, I have no doubt that there will be several opportunities for you to engage with me and other members of the Secretariat staff during your tenure as Ambassador to the Community. I fully anticipate that the vast experience which you bring to this post, and the broad spectrum of issues and portfolios which you have covered in your distinguished career, will enhance the CARICOM-Japan partnership. Ambassador, I have the honour to accept the Letters formally accrediting you as Japan’s Plenipotentiary Representative to the Caribbean Community. I am pleased to welcome you most warmly to the Community.

I thank you.

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