SOCIAL SECTOR INVESTMENT PROGRAMME
15
SUSTAINING GROWTH, SECURING PROSPERITY
domestic demand which continues to surpass
output growth.
2.2 REGIONAL INTEGRATION
The limitations of small size of Caribbean
islands have been the mainmotive for economic
integration initiatives. For this reason, the focus
of regional integration has been on functional
cooperation with an emphasis on economic
development. In the past there have been two
main approaches to integration in the region.
Firstly, through the economies of scale afforded
by harmonisation on common external services
and secondly, through the establishment of
common infrastructure that would transcend
national interests. The aim was to foster deeper
integration among member states while at
the same time promoting the flexibility of the
movement regionally and internationally. This
has included pursuing a monetary union in
the OECS, joint missions overseas and a free
trade area.
It is argued that in order to deal with issues
such as climate change, transnational crime,
the decline of regional industries, food security,
governance
challenges
and
international
diplomacy, a well-organised regional response
would be most effective. Many proponents of
regional integration in the region argue that
these issues are becoming more critical and
that a lack of coordinated regional responses
could impact negatively on Caribbean society.
July 2013 marks 40 years of the Caribbean
Community’s (CARICOM’s) regional integration
project, since its origins in the Caribbean Free
Trade Area (CARIFTA). The world has changed
dramatically during this time, presenting
more complex challenges for development
and therefore, reshaping the LAC regional
landscape. These developments raise questions
as to the very viability and relevance of the
CARICOM project in its current form, as varied
complex developments have taken place since
its launch, whilst some aspects of the regional
Community Institutions
• Caribbean
Agricultural
Research
and
Development Institute (CARDI)
• Caribbean Aviation Safety and Security
Oversight System (CASSOS)
• Caribbean
Centre
for
Development
Administration (CARICAD)
• Caribbean Community Climate Change
Centre (CCCCC)
• Caribbean Disaster EmergencyManagement
Agency (CDEMA)
• Caribbean Export Development Agency
(CEDA)
• Caribbean Institute for Metrology and
Hydrology (CIMH)
• Caribbean Implementation Agency for Crime
and Security (IMPACS)
• Caribbean Knowledge and Learning Network
(CKLN)
• Caribbean
Meteorological
Organisation
(CMO)
• Caribbean Regional Centre for the Education
and Training of Animal-
• Health and Veterinary Public Health
Assistants (REPAHA)
• Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism
(CFM)
• Caribbean Regional Public Health Agency
(CARPHA)
• Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU)
• Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO)
• Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC)
Associate Institutions
• Caribbean Development Bank (CDB)
• Caribbean Law Institute/Caribbean Law
Institute Centre (CLI/CLIC)
• Council for Legal Education (CLE)
• University of Guyana (UG)
• University of the West Indies (UWI)
• Secretariat of the Organisation of Eastern
Caribbean States (OECS)
Box 2.1:
Essential Regional Institutions
CHAPTER 2: THE CARIBBEAN SOCIAL SITUATION
experience remain unchanged. Chief of these
is the continued existence of a large number of
non-independent or sub-state entities for which
regional projects throughout the Caribbean
and Latin America have not offered a viable
