The Twenty-Ninth Meeting of the Conference of Heads of
Government held in Antigua and Barbuda in July 2008
endorsed the proposal of Prime Minister Baldwin
Spencer, Lead Head with responsibility for Services
in the Quaisi Cabinet to convene a Regional
Symposium on Services.
This Symposium is scheduled for 15-17 July 2009
in Antigua and Barbuda. It will provide a platform
for the finalization of the Strategic Plan for
Regional Development.
Objectives of the Symposium
Speeches
Remarks by His Excellency Edwin. W. Carrington,
Secretary-General, Caribbean Community (CARICOM)
Feature Address by the Hon. Baldwin Spencer,
Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda and Lead
Head of Government with responsibility for
Services
Statement by Mr. Lawrence Placide, President,
Trinidad and Tobago Coalition of Service
Industries
Press releases
Concept Papers
PowerPoint Presentations
OBJECTIVES OF THE
SYMPOSIUM
Within the context of finalizing the Strategic
Plan for Regional Development and taking into
account the adverse effects of the financial crisis
and global recession, the Symposium has three major
objectives, namely:
(i) To sensitize the key stakeholders in the
sector on how to capitalize on the Region’s
comparative advantage in the area of services
for the increased development of the Community
(ii) To develop a plan of action for the
period 2009-2013/14; and
(iii) To give concrete expression to the
services component of the Single Economy
Development Vision within the context of the
Strategic Plan for Regional Development.
Participation
Invitations are extended to internationally
renowned services experts, senior members of the
academic community from the Region, industry
specialists, consumer representatives, Chief
Executive Officers and owners of large, medium, and
small firms operating in the sector, representatives
of international organisations, and Senior Public
Sector Officials, especially at the level of
Permanent Secretary.
Sponsors
Funding has been secured for the Symposium by the
following international agencies:-
(i) The United Kingdom Department of
International Development (DFID)
(ii) Spanish Agency for International
Cooperation for Development (AECID)
(iii) The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP);
and
(iv) United Nations Conference on Trade and
Development (UNCTAD)
Contact information
For information related to the Symposium, send an
e-mail to
servicessymposium@caricom.org.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Importance of the Services Sector
The Services Sector is the largest sector of the
CSME accounting for more than two-thirds of total
employment, output and exports. This notwithstanding
the regional regime for services is still in its
formative stage and work is underway to establish
the facilitating legislative and policy frameworks
at the regional and national levels so as to promote
the sustainable growth of the sector. An essential
component of this work is the development of a
Regional Development and Strategic Plan and a Plan
of Action for the five-year period 2009-2014. It is
expected that these would feed into the Regional
Strategic Plan for the CARICOM Single Economy
scheduled for 2015.
Scope and Coverage
The Services Sector consists of a heterogeneous
set of activities ranging from Embalming to Research
and Development in Space Technology. Based on the
classification system used by the members of the
World Trade Organisation (WTO), the services sector
has twelve sub-sectors and at least one hundred and
fifty-five (155) activities.
The Symposium will consider all sub-sectors and
all activities of the service sector.
Services Sub-Sectors
Citing the Services sectoral classification used
by trade negotiators during the Uruguay Round
services consist of 12 broad sub-sectors
encompassing approximately 155 activities. The 12
broad sub-sectors are:
Communication Services
Business Services
Construction and Related Engineering Services
Distribution Services
Education Services
Environmental Services
Financial Services
Health Related and Social Services
Tourism & Travel Related Services
Recreational, Cultural and Sporting Services
Transport Services
Other Services not included elsewhere
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