Caricom to open trade office in Cuba

Caricom to open trade office in Cuba



CUBA STANDARD — The Caribbean Community (Caricom) plans to open a trade

facilitation office in Cuba, which is not a member of the bloc.



The office in Havana, together with offices in the Dominican Republic,

Costa Rica, Colombia, and Venezuela, will be "key to the region taking

greater advantage of trade agreements with third countries," the

Guyana-based Caricom Secretariat said in a statement.



Caricom trade with Cuba and other nations in the region, which have

bilateral trade agreements with the bloc, has been "weak," according to

the bloc.



The Caricom secretariat is acting on the recommendation of a study by

BKP Research and Consulting in Germany. In particular the consultant

highlights the need for improved communication with and assistance for

regional exporters via trade facilitation offices. Senior trade

officials in the region will review the findings of the study in

mid-February.



The study notes that "the divergence in interests between Caricom

members, which is the result of vast differences in their economic

structures," is a major obstacle to overcome.



Full Caricom members are Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize,

Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and

Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad &

Tobago. Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, and

Turks and Caicos have association agreements.