Ambassador Koichiro Seki
Members of the Japanese delegation
Members of the CARICOM delegation
Ambassador Lolita Applewhaite, CARICOM Deputy Secretary-General
Officials of the CARICOM Secretariat
Members of the Media

It is with great pleasure that I welcome the distinguished delegation from Japan and Delegations from the Caribbean Community to the Twelfth CARICOM-Japan Consultations being held here at the Headquarters of the Caribbean Community Secretariat, a building which we rightly call our own but for whose construct the Community owes much to the generosity of the Government of Japan.

The convening of this the Twelfth Consultations signals the continuing forward thrust of the excellent relations that exist between countries of the Caribbean Community and Japan. CARICOM-Japan relations have come a long way since our initial encounter in 1993. That relationship was further defined by the signing of the “New Framework for CARICOM-Japan Cooperation Agreement for the Twenty-First Century” which sets the backdrop for our current relations.

I would like to take this opportunity to express the Community’s gratitude for the provision of the Video Conference Facility housed here at the Secretariat which has greatly facilitated communication within the Community by linking the Secretariat with several Member States.

One of the key instruments for our cooperation is the Japan-CARICOM Friendship and Cooperation Fund. CARICOM is appreciative of this specially designed mechanism aimed at facilitating funding from both the public and private sectors of Japan to the people of the Caribbean. The Region has also benefited from technical assistance through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The Community must however work assiduously to ensure that the support offered by Japan is utilised to the fullest and in a timely manner. The presence of Dr Nakai at the Secretariat to monitor the implementation of the JICA projects is for us therefore a welcome initiative.

President’s Jagdeo during his visit to Japan in June of this year expressed appreciation on behalf of CARICOM for the valuable assistance which the Region had received in the past and continues to receive for the development efforts of the Region. Another area in which CARICOM-Japan cooperation has been particularly beneficial is in the fisheries sector. In this regard, the Fisheries Master Plan Project financed by Japan is underway and when completed will provide support to the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) headquartered in Belize.

CARICOM-Japan cooperation also extends beyond the Regional sphere. Our countries to collaborate in international fora including at the United Nations and the World Trade Organisation.

We expect that at the Second CARICOM-Japan Ministerial Meeting our respective Ministers will adopt the Draft Plan of Action which lists areas for cooperation in on various issues including but not limited to environment and disaster mitigation; the CARICOM Single Market and Economy; human and social development; promotion of trade, tourism and investment; sustainable growth; reinforcement of good governance; information and communications technology; and arts and culture.

These areas complement CARICOM’s renewed focus on functional cooperation under which the benefits of the integration movement are distributed through the length and breadth of the Community. At the recently concluded Twenty-eighth Meeting of the Conference, CARICOM Heads of Government adopted a declaration on functional cooperation entitled “A Community For All”. That declaration highlights CARICOM’s priorities in the area of functional cooperation - health, human and social development, communication, crime and security, environment, energy and agriculture.

Already the CARICOM Single Market has been established and we anticipate that with the support of friendly countries, such as Japan, that the Single Economy will become fully operational by 2015.

As we hold the Twelfth CARICOM-Japan Consultations today, I look forward to fruitful discussions that will extend the excellent record of collaboration between CARICOM and Japan.

I thank you.