Dominica: Dr Roosevelt Skerrit – the Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Dominica, has addressed major issues and challenges in front of the CARICOM (The Caribbean Community and Common Market) Community in the presence of top United States (US) diplomat – Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
This came ahead of the appointment of Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit as the incoming chairman of CARICOM following its 50th Anniversary.
According to the shared information, Dominica’s Prime Minister has assumed CARICOM’s Chairmanship during the recently held meeting of CARICOM Heads of Government in Trinidad and Tobago, Hyatt Regency, from 3rd to 5th July 2023.
In addition, he addressed the issues and pressing concerns affecting the Caribbean region on the sidelines of the celebration of 50 years of CARICOM.
Furthermore, the reports have claimed that during his address, a number of diplomats and representatives were present at the moment. The meeting was hosted by Democratic Leader in the United States (US) House of Representatives and Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, along with United States top diplomat and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who also addressed the Caribbean leaders on various topics and concepts.
Furthermore, while extending his remarks, Prime Minister of Dominica, Roosevelt Skerrit, has noted that the Caribbean region and sister states have been facing numerous issues, which include food security, issues of blacklisting, energy security correspondent banking and access to concessional development financing.
In this context, he specifically mentioned another challenge and well-recognized issue to deal with: the situation in Haiti. He certainly gave attention to this issue among others as well because CARICOM has been acknowledging the Haiti situation, including their security and rights.
He called the US diplomats for their support and assistance to tackle the mentioned issues more efficiently, said reports.
On his part, US diplomat and Secretary of State Antony Blinken took it to assure their support to Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit and CARICOM Leaders regarding Haiti. He extended his remarks and noted that he has focused on restoring the security issues in Haiti and conveyed that “this is an area of intense focus for us”.
Moreover, Antony Blinken also addressed the issue of climate change and its adverse effects on the Caribbean region, along with researching ways to reduce crime rates.
During the meeting, he also promised $5.5 million to provide financial help to the farmers of the Caribbean region in order to help them increase their productivity and number of crops with the help of the latest technology.
In the end, social solidarity was also pledged by US Congressman Jeffries while focusing on a variety of regional challenges and issues related to climate change and security, concluded reports.
