Summary of E.S. Williams' speech

The CSME is important for the Caribbean to reach economic development. In the Caribbean, economic development is slow compared to other small countries. The region tends to focus on exploiting natural resources or relying on “preferential agreements” for agricultural produce. In 1975, the Caribbean was on par with countries like Ireland, Singapore and Cyprus in terms of GDP per capita. By the 21^st century, Ireland and Singapore had bypassed the Caribbean not only in terms of GDP but in other development factors. The Caribbean had a low growth rate in comparison with other “small island states” and the new Asian countries grew at a faster rate than perceived in the Caribbean. This is not to say that the Caribbean does not do well. In the 2000’s, economic growth has increased with the Cricket World Cup 2007 in the tourist countries and oil in Trinidad and Tobago. The HDI is high compared to other developing markets. There are three main challenges to economic integration. The first is the removal of preferential trade agreements. The Caribbean would find it difficult to let go of preferential agreements especially since there have been a number of external “shocks” in the region. The second is increasing productivity levels to a level on par with the rest of the developed world. The Caribbean would find it difficult to increase productivity in the region especially with competition from China. The “third challenge” is the debt still present in many governments’ budgets. This has largely resulted from over-spending on the government’s part. For the CSME to be implemented, there will be need for a lot of funds. Some to be donated by the members and the rest by the development partners. There are also concerns that since some member states do not have the necessary funding to fully contribute, the other more-developed states will have to take up the slack. Therefore, there will be need for compensatory procedures and economic policy restructuring.