CARICOM
& Preparation for Free
Trade Agreement Negotiations
Mr. Arthur Gray
Director
Foreign Policy and External Economic Relations
Caricom Secretariat
Paper was Presented at the Colloquium Entitled "Diplomacy
After 2000 : Small States and Negotiating Space in the New
International Trading Environment" Organised by the Institute of
International Relations, UWI for the
8th and 9th of October, 1996.
Contents
Introduction
CARICOM's Participation in
The Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Process
Proposals to Enhance the
Effectiveness of CARICOM's Preparation for Participation in The
Process
CARICOM &
Preparations for Free Trade Agreement Negotiations with Selected
Territories
Some Critical Issues: The
Dynamics, The Negotiation Environment; Selection of Countries
Overview of the Machinery for
Preparation & Undertaking of External Trade and Economic
Negotiation by the Caribbean Community
Since the signature of the Treaty of Chaguaramas in 1973, a
number of epoch making changes have been registered in the
intemationa1trading system. These changes include the
establishment of economic blocs as the only meaningful
operational units in all corners of the globe, the general
development, consolidation and even intensification of
integration processes as existing processes are revitalised and
new ones created, the entrenchment of market forces as the only
acceptable means for propelling the international economy-
particularly after the collapse of the Soviet Union, itself a
fundamental change, and the globalisation of production.
Another fundamental change refers to the establishment of the
World Trade Organisation, in which all CARICOM members except the
Bahamas and Montserrat are also members, with the principal tasks
of:
(i) cooperating with the IMF and the IBRD with a view to
achieving greater coherence in global economic policy-making-
(ii) Providing a forum for MTN'S and a framework for the
implementation of their results;
(iii) administering dispute settlement procedures
(iv) administering a Trade Policy Review Mechanism
(v) facilitating the implementation of the results of the
Uruguay Round of MTN'S
In the letter of invitation to this colloquium, the objective
was indicated to be "to improve the
understanding of how small states cam maximise their negotiating
position in the new trading order by better preparation and
strategies ". It is against that background that the
ideas I now express have been formulated on the specific topic of
"CARICOM and Preparations for Free Trade Area
Negotiations".
Now, reflecting the recent nature of the evolution of the
international trading system, CARICOM'S entry into the dimension
of FTA Agreements is itself of very recent date. Like all other
institutions: national, regional, hemispheric or global, CARICOM
has had to adjust to the fundamental changes to which I have
already alluded: changes which are ongoing and at a rapid rate.
On the question of this need for a major shift in the Region's
trade policy, I am reminded of the admonition by the Prime
Minister of Barbados, Hon. Owen Arthur, in the Distinguished
Lecture Series sponsored by the Institute of International
Relations on 15 April 1996.
In his lecture entitled "The New Realities of
Caribbean International Economic Relations",the Hon.
Prime Minister expressed the view that:
"the long run has arrived for the Caribbean because the
economic policies and postures, deriving from our passive
incorporation into the international economy as the recipients of
preferences and concessional financial flows, have now been
overtaken by powerful and irreversible international developments
and it would be fatal for the region not to take cognisance and
to accommodate the new realities in its contemporary
international relations".
Implicit in what I am about to say would be an appreciation I
think that the CARICOM Region is indeed taking cognisance of
these new realities.
When I speak of "CARICOM and Preparation for Free Trade
Negotiations"' I am really referring to the process by which
the Member States of the Community arrange for or bring about,
through conference and discussion with third countries and groups
of countries, a desirable type of agreement or acceptable
compromise in the area of trade. Specifically, the Region in its
Trade Policy, is seeking to create a regional space within the
wider regional and hemispheric space seeking more effective
insertion with the promise of expanded and beneficial
possibilities for trade.
In summary terms, this "effective insertion" is
being pursued against the background of inter alia,:
* the changing Global Environment and the increasing lack of
concern for, understanding of and interest in the needs of Small Developing
Countries, especially the CARICOM countries which no longer
hold a strategic place militarily, economically or
geographically;
* a perceived loss of influence by the Region on Global Issues
and in International Organisations and Forums and a real threat
to its export trade and to its access to external financial and
technical resources;
* the limited human resources available to the individual
CARICOM States and to the Community to address the range and
complexity of international issues;
* the need to take a more systematic and focussed approach to
major international issues; the need to develop a broader
diplomatic base and to coordinate positions with other developing
countries and groupings with similar interests;
* the decision to liberalise the regional market by
systematically reducing the Common External Tariff and to phase
out the use of quantitative restrictions as a means of protecting
regional production;
* the strong link between international developments and
internal (national and regional) policies.
Further, the major objectives underpinning the future
international economic negotiations to be pursued by the Region
include:
* appropriate production and market diversification;
* effective market access for CARICOM exports;
* access to the most advantageous sources of imports;
* an environment conductive to regional and foreign
investment; and
* a stronger role, as a supplier, in the international market
for services.
The achievement of these objectives calls for skill, for
strategy, for technique-in a word, for preparation.
Adequate and thorough preparation.
The efforts of CARICOM as a bloc negotiating in the trade
sector, as in others, is in accordance with Article 4 of the
Treaty of Chaguaramas which identifies as one of the objectives
of the Community, "the coordination of the foreign policies
of Member States".
More recently at, its Special Meeting which convened in
Port-of- Spain in October 1992, the Heads of Government
Conference of the Caribbean Community in the issue of
"CARICOM, the wider Caribbean and Beyond" agreed,
inter alia, that:
(i) CARICOM Governments adopt a collective approach to current
and potential changes in the international Community, including
international political and financial institutions, and reflect
this approach in common arrangements for international economic
negotiations and diplomatic representation.
(ii) CARICOM seek to bridge the divide between its Member
States and other states and territories of the Caribbean and
Latin America, recognising the advent of an increasingly
"Caribbean Basin" approach to international
negotiations and development issues ....
For the purpose of this presentation, the preparations
undertaken and being undertaken by CARICOM as a Group for the
negotiation Free Trade Agreements will be reviewed with
particular reference to the decision adopted at the Miami Summit
in December 1994, for the creation of FTAA and to the decision by
the Heads of Government of CARICOM itself to pursue the
negotiation of FTA's with other selected countries of the
hemisphere.
In the interest of brevity, the recently constituted ACS comprising all the States, Countries and Territories of the Caribbean Basin, will not be an area of focus. In any event, the ACS has not been designed as a free trade area 'even if by reference to the conclusions of the Inaugural Summit of the Association, some considerable degree of liberalisation is contemplated .Further, I am convinced that in presentations made later today, the ACS will receive adequate examination
CARICOM's Participation In
The Free Trade Area Of The Americas (FTAA) Process
As has been indicated and as is generally known, the decision "to the conclude the negotiation of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), no later than 2005" .
.....building ...... "on existing sub-regional and
bilateral arrangements in order to broaden and deepen hemispheric
economic integration and to bring the arrangements together,
"has its origin in the December 1994 Summit of the America.
At the first Trade Ministerial Meeting held in Denver, Colorado,
U.S.A., on 30 June 1995, seven Working Groups were formed to
advance the process. At the Second ministerial Trade meeting held
in Cartagena de las Indias, Colombia, on 21 March 1996, four
additional working Groups were established.
The Working Groups cover such areas as:
- Market Access. (El Salvador)
- Customs Procedures and Rules of Origin (Bolivia)
- Investment (Costa Rica)
- Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (Mexico)
- Smaller Economies (Jamaica)
- Government Procurement (USA)
- Intellectual Property Rights (Honduras)
- Services (Chile)
- Competition Policies (Peru)
- Standards and Technical Barriers to Trade (Canada)
From the outset, it was recognised that the Member States of
CARICOM did not have the time, the financial and human resources
and, in some cases, the expertise to adequately cover the
activities of all the Working Groups. This situation has become
even more acute with the increase in the number of Working
Groups, the number of meetings, their frequency, as well as, the
geographic spread of their venues. (Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica,
El Salvador, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Peru, USA, and so on)
As we are all aware, the Working Groups, undertake, among
other tasks, the examination of trade- related measures with a
view towards identifying possible approaches to the eventual
negotiations. They also seek to identify areas of commonality and
divergence on the various issues.
While the reports of the Chairman of the Working Groups are
widely circulated, the content of concept papers
which inform the discussions tend to be limited to inputs from
participants in a given Group. What this means is that absence
from a particular Working Group will necessarily imply the risk
that the Region's position or interest might not be protected or
promoted.
In recognition of the difficulties presented by the situation as outlined, a decision has been taken that the Region's representation would operate on the basis of teams and that Member States would make an effort to participate in at least one Working Group apart from the Working Group on Smaller Economies.
Proposals To Enhance The
Effectiveness Of CARICOM's Preparation For Participation In The
Process
At its Sixteenth Special Meeting, the Common Market Council
recognised the urgent need for detailed preparatory work,
consultations and coordination within the Region on both the
technical issues and with respect to the broad principles. It
also recognised the need for the social partners to play a more
active role in the process. The Council therefore agreed to the
establishment of a High-Level Working Group on the FTAA and to
indepth consultations under the aegis of the Prime Ministerial
Sub-Committee on External Negotiations. These proposals were
endorsed in the Seventeenth meeting of the Heads of Government in
July 1996.
With respect to the specifics of CARICOM'S participation in
the process towards establishing the Free Trade of the Americas,
the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee at its Fifth Meeting in
September 1996, agreed to accept the offer of four countries to
lead eight of the FTAA Working Groups. Barbados will lead
on Intellectual Property Rights and Services. Belize will
lead on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures. Jamaica will
lead on Small Economies and Investments while Trinidad and
Tobago will lead on Market Access, Standards and Technical
Barriers to Trade as well as, on Subsidies, Antidumping and
Countervailing Measures.
The Sub-Committee also agreed that the Region's effectiveness
in the process could be enhanced at the technical level, at the
political level and at the level of institutional arrangements or
modalities.
(a) at the technical level by strengthening the
technical capabilities of the Secretariat, by developing a pool
of expertise in the Region and by seeking technical assistance
from international and hemispheric institutions such as UNCTAD,
OAS, IDB, ECLAC and SELA. In this context, a proposal was made by
Barbados that a specialised unit be created in the CARICOM
Secretariat to focus on trade issues;
(b)at the political level by -
* coordination with Central America through Ministerial
Consultation at the Third CARICOM/Central American Ministerial
Conference currently scheduled for November 1996;
* discussions with the Ministers of the MERCOSUR countries,
possibly preceding the Third Hemispheric Trade Ministers Meeting,
May 1997. A Meeting of Officials of CARICOM and MERCOSUR was held
in Brazil on 15 September 1996 on the eve of the First Meeting of
Vice Ministers of Trade of the Hemisphere as a means of
initiating contact between the two sub-regions and to engage in a
preliminary exploration of possibilities, both in the context of
the FTAA and elsewhere;
* the sensitisation of key persons in the USA through a
Ministerial Mission to that country, possibly in early 1997, and
the possible convening of a Summit between the President of the
United States of America and CARICOM Heads of Government;
* the continued dialogue with Canada during the Joint Trade
and Economic Committee Meeting in November 1996;
* discussions in the SELA Ministerial Meeting in October 1996
and the Ministerial Council of the ACS in December 1996;
(c) with respect to the improvement of the Institutional
arrangements, the Sub-Committee:
* identified a lead country within each working group;
* recommended that once a country had been designated
CARICOM leader in a particular Working Group or Cluster of
Groups, that country would be expected to participate actively in
the work of the Group or Groups;
* It also requested the Secretariat to participate and assist the lead countries in executing their functions in their respective Working Groups;
* and called on the lead countries to prepare a concept paper
on the approach to the issues in their respective Working Groups;
* In addition the Sub-Committee also requested the lead countries to prepare reports of meetings, identify deadlines for submissions to the Working Groups, transmit background and working documents from the Group to the Secretariat for analysis and onward dissemination to other Member States, and inform the Secretariat of the scheduling of meetings of the Working Group;
* Wherever possible, copies of comments on working documents
or submissions to the various Working Groups be provided to the
Secretariat for the information of other member states
* At the national level, it was recommended that Member States
identify a coordinator for the FTAA process and establish
national committees on the FTAA;
It was also recommended that -
(a) the members of the Advisory Committee identify experts
within their organisations who could be designated to provide
advice on issues related to the FTAA; these Advisory Groups
comprise the President of the CDB, the Vice Chancellor of the
UWI, the Director General of the OECS, the Governor of the ECCB
and the Secretary General of the Caricom Secretariat.
(b) Also, it was recommended that at the national level,
private sector organisations be invited to develop positions on
specific issues which could be fed into the national briefs;
* Finally Member States were urged to participate more
actively in the Working Group on Smaller Economies.
These elements will be revisited after programmes for the FTA's with selected countries are outlined so that the overall structure and procedure of preparation might be better appreciated.
CARICOM And
Preparations For Free Trade Agreement Negotiations With Selected
Countries.
At the Sixteenth Meeting of the Conference of Heads of
Government held in July 1996, a proposal was examined to the
effect that consideration be given by the Caribbean Community
(CARICOM) to negotiating enhanced trade arrangements
incorporating the principle of reciprocity and based on a list of
exceptions. Reciprocity would be based on the principle contained
in the CARICOM/Colombia Agreement concluded in 1994 in which the
Less Developed Countries (LDCS) of the Caribbean Community are
not required to provide preferential treatment. In the
presentation this item, it was argued that the one-way
preferential arrangements which had been concluded with Venezuela
and Colombia had not been conducive to the development of the
expected increases in export capability and international
competitiveness since those agreements provided access for an
insignificant number of competitive CARICOM products. With
respect to the issue of reciprocity, it was noted that the Region
could no longer expect to effectively pursue one-way preferential
trading arrangements with other countries in view of the economic
philosophy which prevails in the contemporary liberalised global
trading environment.
The Conference endorsed the need for CARICOM to pursue enhanced trade arrangements with selected third countries in Latin America and the Caribbean in order to achieve sustained growth in the face of the new global trading environment and accepted the proposals of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago.
The Conference took note of the elements contained in the
proposals namely:
(i) a standard form agreement to be approved by Member States;
(ii) CARICOM MDC countries would provide reciprocity under the
Agreement;
(iii) CARICOM LDC countries would be exempted from providing
reciprocity;
(iv) all items may be traded between CARICOM and third
countries party to these agreements except those items specified
under an Exemption List;
Further, the Conference agreed inter alia, that:
(i) the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee on External Economic
Negotiations is to be designated as the body responsible for
overseeing the conduct of negotiations between CARICOM and third
countries with respect to the enhanced trade arrangements and
will also be responsible for the establishment and composition of
the negotiating team;
(ii) the CARICOM Secretariat will be integrally involved in
the negotiation process with respect to these Agreements;
(iii) that draft agreements would have to be agreed by the
Council and the Conference before they can be finalised".
In keeping with this mandate of the Conference, a Draft Model
Free Trade Agreement was prepared, taking into account comments
received from Member States.
At the Seventh Inter-Sessional Meeting held in Guyana on 29 February - 1 March 1996, the Heads of Government Conference accepted the recommendation of the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee on External Negotiations, and approved a Draft Model Free Trade Agreement with the understanding the Draft would be used as a basis of negotiation taking into account the differences in the levels of development between the parties in the particular negotiations, and the implications for the application of reciprocity by CARICOM States.
Some Critical Issues: The
Dynamics, The Negotiating,Environment;Selection Of Countries
In approving the Model Free Trade Agreement, the Conference
had accepted that there would be an agreed list of products which
would be excluded from the Free Trade Agreement. The
Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference requested Member States
to consult with their respective private sectors before
submitting their lists to the Secretariat.
It is to be borne in mind that the negotiation of these Free
Trade Agreements will be taking place concurrently with the
discussions on the creation of the Free Trade Area of the
Americas (FTAA). A critical issue for the Region in the content
Of FTA'S and the choice of countries for negotiation is to ensure
a consistent and reinforcing position. In the discussions towards
the FTAA and, particularly, in the Working Group on Smaller
Economies, the Region has been seeking, inter alia to:
(i) have the larger economies in the Hemisphere recognise that
the smaller economies will require asymmetrical treatment in the
early stages of the FTAA through among other measures, a longer
time over which to admit products from larger economies duty
flee;
(ii)have all the CARICOM countries classified as smaller
economies; and
(iii)establish that the principle of special or differential
treatment is provided for in almost all existing Free Trade
Agreements.
It should be noted that the United States of America, Brazil
and Mexico, among the larger economies, have been resisting the
principle.
The conclusion by CARICOM of a fully reciprocal Agreement even
if the reciprocity is limited to the MDCs, would provide very
powerful arguments for the opponents in the negotiations of the
FTAA and would in any event create practical difficulties.
Presumably, the FTAA will have a provision relating to
non-discrimination among members in the same category. In that
situation, if a CARICOM State were to provide free access, say,
to Brazil, which is categorized as a larger economy, the CARICOM
State would not be able to deny that treatment to other larger
states such as the USA and Canada. In the selection of countries
for negotiation the CARICOM States would need to address
significant attention to this issue.
Selection of Countries
It is agreed that the selection of countries should be guided,
inter alia, by following criteria:
(i) the identification of opportunities for the export of
CARICOM goods and services including tourism;
(ii) the identification of opportunities to obtain imports of
quality goods at competitive prices, especially inputs for the
manufacturing and tourism sectors;
(iii) possibilities for the flow of investments for
joint-ventures;
(iv) availability of transportation services;
(v) the likely classification in the FTAA.
At the Seventeenth Meeting held in July 1996, the Heads of
Government identified for priority attention, the negotiation of
Free Trade Agreements with Colombia, the Central American
Common Market (or Costa Rica), the Dominican Republic
and Venezuela.
When the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee on External
Negotiations convened in Jamaica some three weeks ago, on 17-18
September 1996, it agreed that efforts will be made during the
CARIFORUM Ministerial Meeting in mid-October 1996 in the
Dominican Republic, to explore with that country, the scheduling
of negotiation of a Free Trade Agreement. The results of that
process are to be reported to the Inter-Sessional Meeting of the
Conference in early 1997.
Three Member States, Dominica, Grenada and St. Kitts and Nevis
have transmitted lists of items proposed for exclusion from any
free trade agreement . Jamaica is expected to submit a list
shortly, and Barbados is reportedly consulting with the private
sector towards developing a list. In an effort to accelerate the
Region's preparation for the relevant negotiations, the Committee
called on the other Member States to transmit their exclusion
lists Secretariat as soon as possible so that, when the Draft
Free Trade Agreement is made available to the identified States,
the Region's comprehensive list of proposed exclusions could also
be presented. Agreement was also reached on the need to
incorporate the social partners - organised labour, the private
sector and the NGS'S to the core negotiating team agreed
by the Conference while accepting that, where the other State(s)
participating in the negotiations have difficulty with the
presence of personnel other than government officials, the Region
would be flexible in its approach.
Negotiating Teams
As regards negotiating teams, a recommendation of the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee for the establishment of a CARICOM negotiating team was accepted by the Inter-Sessional Meeting in February-March of this year. The core team would comprise a representative from each MDC Member State, Belize, the CARICOM Secretariat, the OECS Secretariat and the CDB. In addition, there would be two representatives from the OECS countries (LDC'S)
At its Seventeenth Meeting held in Barbados in July 1996, the
Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community gave in-depth
consideration to the question of the effective regional
coordination and the execution of a number of forthcoming
external negotiations. These negotiations related particularly
to:
(1) The Region's relations with Europe on the expiry of Lomé
IV in 2000;
(2) The Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)
(3) The expansion of the Community's trade relations in the
Caribbean Basin;
The guiding principles that inform this initiative are the need
to:
(1) draw on the widest possible repertoire of skills available
to the Region;
(2) ensure a measure of representation of and participation by
all Member States in the process;
(3) invite all major sectors of the regional economy
(4) draw, as necessary, on the work of other institutions,
especially those designed to serve the Region.
In the context of preparation for negotiations, three aspects
have been identified as being of critical importance, namely:
(i) The Machinery;
(ii) The Working Procedures;
(ill) the Resources - both human and financial
The Machinery :
(a) The Political level
As will have been gleaned from my earlier remarks, a
significant element of the necessary machinery is already in
existence. At the political level, the specific mechanism
established to direct the external negotiations of the Community
is the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee on External
Negotiations. The Sub-Committee comprises the Hon. Prime Minister
of Jamaica (Chairman), the President of Guyana, and the
Prime Ministers of Barbados, Saint Lucia and Trinidad
and Tobago. By virtue of his position as Chairman, the Prime
Minister of Jamaica is the principal Community spokesman on
external negotiations. At the Meeting of the Prime Ministerial
Sub-Committee last month, a decision was taken to make the
Committee's membership open-ended..
(b) Now for The Technical level
The second part of the existing structure established by the
Conference is the Technical Advisory Group which comprises
the President of the CDB, the Vice-Chancellor of the University
of the West Indies, the Director-General of the OECS, the
Governor of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) and the
Secretariat of CARICOM.
From the deliberations of the Seventeenth Meeting of Heads of
Government (July 1996), it was clear that for the purposes of
the negotiations, this body would need to be enlarged,
particularly to provide for a greater role for the private
sector, labour and Non-Governmental Organisations.
The need was also perceived for the establishment of a dear
nexus between the Technical Advisory Group and the Community's
Ministerial Councils of Finance, of Trade and Economic
Development, and of Foreign and Community Relations.
Some New Elements
An issue that has given rise to heightened and widespread
concern with the Community and even beyond, relates to
perceptions of the Region's capacity and readiness to adequately
deal with the numerous, major, forthcoming negotiations in which
it must participate. In this regard, there is the clear
inadequacy of the existing technical organs in particular the
CARICOM and OECS Secretariats, to provide all the required
technical, legal and other negotiating inputs. From this it
follows that any approach to deal with this deficit must aim to
draw on a wider catchment of skills. At the same time, it is
recognised that the mechanism must be focused, structured, and
inter-connected to ensure thrust, consistency and cross
fertilisation. It was also recognised that the mechanism must be affordable.
Negotiating Working Groups
The Prime Ministerial Sub-committee also agreed that, for the
preparation of the technical and political inputs for the
negotiating brief and for support to the execution of the
negotiations in the different areas, it would be necessary to
establish a number of specialised Negotiating Working Groups.
Among the areas in respect of which the establishment of such
Groups have been identified are the Free Trade Area of the
Americas (FTAA) and the Region's trade expansion initiatives in
the Caribbean Basin.
The composition of these Groups would include, in addition to
Government officials, officials from the CARICOM and OECS
Secretariats, skilled personnel from regional institutions, the
private sector, labour and Non-Governmental Organisations. The
Groups will be charged with the preparation of technical briefs
which will be coordinated by the Secretariat, reviewed
by the Technical Advisory Group and decided upon by the
Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee. The negotiator to spearhead a
given area of negotiation would be determined by the Prime
Ministerial Sub-Committee. taking into account the
recommendations of the Technical Advisory Group.
The Community's Ambassadors in relevant diplomatic centres
will also be actively involved in the process and, in this
regard, a more effective system of communication is to be
established.
The Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee also agreed to appoint a
full time Chief Negotiator to inter alia,
spearhead the entire negotiating process and to coordinate the
sectoral negotiations providing advice and resolving issues. It
is envisaged that the appointee will be accorded Ambassadorial
rank and be a person of political stature.
Financing
As regards financing, the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee
agreed to establish a group involving representatives from the
CDB, Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), the Private Sector,
and the CARICOM and OECS Secretariats to prepare a two-year
budget for the approved machinery. Against the declared
willingness by the CDB to make a contribution towards the
"start-up" of the machinery, a decision was taken to
approach the Inter-American Development Bank for a similar
contribution. Funds will also be sought from donor countries and
agencies to supplement the contributions of CARICOM Member
States.
Training
Yet to be mentioned is a critical element in the maximisation
by CARICOM Member States of their negotiating positions in the
new trading order. This refers to the need for continuous training
at all levels of the negotiating process, not only in Ministries
of Trade but also in Ministries of Foreign Affairs and elsewhere.
The contemporary international trade agenda touches on the
activities of all Government Departments. This agenda is also
recognised to be extremely complex and incorporates new issues,
many of which are nothing if not controversial. The modem legal
approach and the consequent incursion. en masse, of lawyers into
what had traditionally been the preview of economists adds to the
complexity. The development of negotiating capacity is therefore
vital. The need to develop adequate negotiating technique, quite
apart from profound knowledge of subject matter, is also worthy
of mention as a separate issue.
Subsumed under the concept of "negotiating capacity"
is the need to be thoroughly familiar not only with the
juridical-technical aspects of the areas to be negotiated, but
also with the knowledge of internal political structures and
developments in the interlocutor countries coupled with a
thorough knowledge of all relevant integration processes. Nor can
the relevance of foreign language capability and other
transcultural aspects be over emphasised.
The existence of a deficit in these areas within the Region
has long been recognised. Training, whether in the form of
seminars, more structured arrangements, attachments to relevant
institutions, apprenticeships and other modalities are seen as
the key to overcoming the situation. While some achievements have
been made in this regard, there is no denying that very much
remains to be done.
A final comment with implications for the negotiation of FTA's
by CARICOM member states relates to the differing degrees of
readiness for such undertaking that is observable among them.
This comment is as relevant to the ' economic' aspect as it is to
the aspect of negotiating capacity. Perhaps these two go
together. Unless this situation is effectively managed the
implications for the overall conduct and coordination of
negotiations at the regional level could be adverse.
I trust the foregoing comments have permitted an appreciation
of the approaches being used by Caricom toward negotiations for
FTA'S. I have looked at the context-the new international trading
context- in which these approaches have been developed including
a fairly detailed exposé of the mechanisms now contemplated. The
need for training as a means of enhancing negotiating capacity
was also emphasised. I look forward to a lively exchange on what
are, after all, newly minted, though in some instances, recently
revamped, approaches and mechanisms which are to serve Caricom in
its preparations for Free Trade Agreements.
I thank you.
25 September 1996
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