(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) Immediate past chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Dr, the Honourable Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines, has made an impassioned plea to his fellow CARICOM Heads of States to throw their support behind the regional carrier, Leeward Island Air Transport (LIAT).

Addressing the Official Opening of the 28th Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community in Barbados on July 1, Dr Gonsalves reminded his colleagues that the ‘Titans’ of the regional integration movement had agreed at the historic signing of the Treaty of Chaguaramas in 1973 to support LIAT as a regional entity, and called on the Community to demonstrate the resolve of their forbears.

Dr Gonsalves said the cost of operations of the regional air line was being borne primarily by three Member States - Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines - and that the three countries could not be expected to carry the burden forever. Acknowledging that the airline, needed to implement further internal reforms to enhance its efficiency, the Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines said, “it would help immensely if all regional hands are aboard LIAT.”

The St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister, acknowledging concerns about the cost of regional air travel, described it as “a consequence of a moderate rise in air fares to accommodate market realities and a more substantial hike in taxes and add-ons.”

“Surely, it must be an over-riding obligation of CARICOM member-states, served by LIAT, to put equity in this regional air carrier or provide it with adequate market support,” Dr Gonsalves argued.

It is within this context that the former Chairman of CARICOM has advocated for the fashioning of a sound air transport policy as a priority issue for the Conference, arguing that “all regional governments are obliged to address these concerns jointly and arrive at common solutions.”

The four-day meeting of the Conference, which started on July 1 is being convened under the general theme of Functional Co-operation- A Community for All.