What is CARICOM?

About CARICOM:

• CARICOM, which stands for Caribbean Community, is the oldest surviving integration movement in the developing world.
• It is an organization of Caribbean countries and dependencies originally established as the Caribbean Community and Commons Market in 1973 by the Treaty of Chaguaramas.
• Main Purposes:
  • Promote economic integration and cooperation among its members;
  • To ensure that the benefits of integration are equitably shared;
  • To coordinate foreign policy;
• It replaced the former Caribbean Free Trade Association (CARIFTA), which had become effective in 1968.
• The treaty spurred the development of associate institutions, including the Caribbean Development Bank and the Organization of East Caribbean States, both of which promote economic growth and cooperation.
• In 2001 the heads of government revised the Treaty of Chaguaramas, establishing the Caribbean Community and the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), which would harmonize economic policy and create a single currency.
• In 2007, CARICOM officially inaugurated the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), which serves as the final court of appeal for CARICOM members and also handles regional trade disputes.
• Members:
  • It has 15 members; Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago.
  • Of the 15, all except Montserrat are nation-states.
  • Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, and Turks & Caicos Islands are associate members of the community.
• The chairmanship of the community is rotated every six months among the member countries’ heads.
• The permanent secretariat has its headquarters in Georgetown, Guyana.