Joint Communique: Second Meeting of the CARIFORUM-UK Trade and Development Committee Under the CARIFORUM-United Kingdom Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA)

(CARIFORUM Directorate, CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen Greater Georgetown, Guyana) - The Second Meeting of the CARIFORUM – United Kingdom Trade and Development Committee took place in Georgetown, Guyana on 31 January 2025.

The meeting, chaired by the United Kingdom, was attended by representatives from Antigua and Barbuda; Barbados; Belize; The Commonwealth of the Bahamas; The Commonwealth of Dominica; The Dominican Republic; Grenada; The Cooperative Republic of Guyana; Jamaica; Saint Christopher and Nevis; Saint Lucia; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; The Republic of Suriname; The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago; and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Haiti was represented at the meeting in its capacity as an Observer.

The United Kingdom and the CARIFORUM States reaffirmed their commitment to the full implementation of the EPA and to its ratification. They observed that the Agreement continues to be an important component of their economic and development partnership.

The two Sides discussed several matters of joint interest, including capitalising on the market access offers, implementation of the EPA commitments, including the tariff commitments, enhancing trade in goods and services between CARIFORUM and the United Kingdom and modalities for a regular dialogue on tourism services. Recent trade policy developments in the United Kingdom which have a bearing on the Agreement were also examined.

The Parties, recalling the EPA’s potential to stimulate increased trade and investment flows between the two Sides, discussed high priority market access challenges and what needs to be done in order to ensure that the objectives of the Agreement can be achieved. In particular, note was taken of impediments identified by the CARIFORUM States which present challenges for the States being able to convert market access under the Agreement into effective market presence in the United Kingdom and matters of concern raised by the United Kingdom which impact its market access interests in the CARIFORUM States. The Parties undertook to prioritise agreed actions aimed at addressing challenges.

The United Kingdom and the CARIFORUM States recalled that the EPA is a development focused agreement and recalled the discussions from the Technical Sub Committee on Development Cooperation on the 30th January 2025. The United Kingdom reaffirmed its EPA commitment to providing financial assistance, noting the breadth and diversity of support in the region, and will take into consideration the identified priorities of the CARIFORUM States, to support the CARIFORUM States’ implementation of the Agreement.

The United Kingdom and the CARIFORUM States noted with satisfaction that since the Parties began to provisionally apply the Agreement in 2021, significant milestones have been achieved with respect to the operationalisation of other Joint Institutions notably the Joint CARIFORUM-UK Council (Joint Council), the Special Committee on Services and the Technical Sub-Committee on Development Cooperation. The two Sides discussed the operationalisation and relative prioritisation of other institutions.

The United Kingdom and the CARIFORUM States took note of the expectations for the first Five-Year Review of the EPA. Next steps on this review will continue at a technical level.

The United Kingdom and the CARIFORUM States agreed to hold meetings of other Joint Institutions on mutually agreed dates.