Clarence E Pilgrim

Among the many challenges for our Caribbean Community is to diversify our economies into such areas that science and technology would impact on our life-styles and livelihoods.

Such areas of advancement include information technology, medical services and the resources of the Caribbean Sea. These are among the economic gold-mines, which have to be successfully unearthed, if we hope to move forward.

With the development of the CSME and the OECS Economic Union a reality, it is hoped that this would create the fertile ground necessary for business development in the region. This would lead to the fostering of employment opportunities from local and regional investment initiatives. With the expansion of the CSME, new dimensions for development and growth will arise.

I urge every citizen within the Caribbean Community to take full advantage of the opportunities created by the regional integration movement. In the quest to move the economic indicators into a positive reading, we must as a matter of urgency concentrate on creating the right human resource development package, to maximize productivity with attention paid to job satisfaction employee training and re-training, and the importance of work based learning.

In 2007, among the core objectives of the Caribbean Community should be understanding the various challenges that exist in the regional and international "global village" and calculate what it will take to transform the combined workforce into a highly competitive and productive unit, which strives for excellence in the quality of service provided.

It is therefore significant to highlight the importance of investing in human capital as an integral part of the overall development strategy for the long-term.

In the ECLAC report Economic Survey of Latin America and the Caribbean 2005-2006, it says, "The global economy continued to perform well in 2006, despite an incipient slowdown in a number of developed economies in the second half of the year. World output will expand by around 3.8% in 2006, compared with 3.5% in 2005."  The report further says that "the performance of the region's economies suggest that the expansion begun four years ago will continue in 2007, although at a somewhat slower rate than in 2006. Regional economic activity should expand by around 4.7%, which will translate into an increase of around 3% in per capita GDP."

To capitalize on the foundation of this trend, it is important for the Caribbean Community leadership to form consolidated action in the following areas:

First: As a newly emerging economic bloc, to craft pro development strategies and agreements that encourage economic development for social development and mutual understanding.

Second: For least developed states to collectively recognize the impact and potential of CSME to their economies and integrate it into national accounting systems, the heart of which is aimed at a Poverty Reduction Strategy.

Third: International trade must be seen in the context of the World Trade Organization and other trading agreements and their commitments to define the rules of trading engagement, through which we must implement programs to promote sustainable development.

Fourth: Protection of the environment and its resources must be an essential ingredient in any developmental thrust. Laws, including taxes and appropriate enforcement mechanisms, to protect both development and the environment must be put in place. Also there must be tangible links between industry and technology to support an overall "clean and safe" environmental plan of action.

Fifth: For International Development Agencies, the need to negotiate and utilize the services effectively of agencies like the World Bank Group, Regional Development Banks and Aid Agencies, for key infrastructural and entrepreneurial support.

Sixth: Civil society involvement -- public sector, private sector, non government organizations etc, should cooperate and assist in the process of implementing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by pursuing responsible practices.

Seventh: Creating social policies which would engender a social transformation, that would encompasses fighting social ills, corruption, drug abuse and other activities which undermine the positive dynamics of a modern progressive society.

It is quite clear that for 2007, governments cannot make decisions purely on the basis of their own consultation. We are now in an era where if we are to advance in a unified manner, the bigger vision must include all sectors of society.

An advocate for social justice and human rights, Clarence E Pilgrim, as an educator and a senior officer in the Antigua & Barbuda civil service,  is active in many voluntary organisations. He has passionately promoted the Caribbean Integration Movement, and is an ardent supporter of enviornmental protection, and the careful use of our natural resources. Among his collection of many articles, he has written on the subject of the crucial need to develop alternative energy resources in the Caribbean Community. Mr Pilgrim also provides advice on various social policy issues.