Wednesday, February 17, 2016 Capital Weekly Page 1 No. 047 Wednesday, February 17, 2016 Online Publication CARICOM BELIZE CONFRONTING MAJORcomes EXISTENTIAL to ISSUES elize’s Prime Minis- of the havoc done to Venezue- ter currently holding la, the source of our erstwhile chairmanship of the bounty. To compound matters, Caribbean Community it is clear that the oil price phe- B(CARICOM), Heads of Govern- nomenon is symptomatic of the ment from participating nations more generalized weakening, to have come to town for the 27th which I earlier, in commodities Intersessional Meeting. The of- markets. This worsens the crisis ficial opening took place Monday situation in public finances in evening on the scenic, serene, certain parts of the Eurozone, so stimulating, seaside paradise of that altogether there seems to be Placencia in Stann Creek District. a distinct possibility of the world Welcoming the Prime economy sliding back into re- Ministerial guests and their cession. The consequences that entourage from the Caribbean would entail for our region are family, Prime Minister Barrow both obvious and frightening.” fittingly remarked, “I hope that And with that, Prime the legacy features of these sur- Minister Barrow transitioned roundings will act as aid and into the issue of the day, if you inspiration to our deliberations. Prime Minister Honourable Dean Barrow Delivering Address at the will, the elephant in the room: Opening of the CARICOM Meeting in Placencia Monday Evening And very important delibera- “And when we move from the tions they are; for while that is al- strains on our capacity to satisfy a double-edged sword for a cou- general to the particular, regard- ways the case whenever we meet, the life-improvement aspirations ple of us. So we salute the recent ing global economic and finan- I may be forgiven for thinking, of our people. And it is worth petroleum discoveries in Guyana cial currents, there is one already and hope to make clear, that our noting that even in the few coun- and look forward to that country extant development with abso- issues and challenges are partic- tries that have shown substantial being able to exploit those re- lutely cataclysmic ramifications ularly pronounced at this time.” enough expansion, much of the sources on its own terms. And we for us. I am talking, of course, Getting right down to net effect has been depreciated welcome the benefit to consum- about the phenomenon of so- business, he proceeded to give by population increases. On the ers that cheaper fuel has meant. called de-risking. Under pressure an overview of the general eco- bright side, though, there ap- But at the same time, we regret from their regulatory authorities nomic climate in which our pears to be what we hope will be the effect that both the con- in Europe and especially the US, Caribbean nations currently a sustained resurgence in our re- traction of production and the banks in those jurisdictions have find ourselves: “There has been a gion’s all-important tourism in- precipitate price drop have had been closing their correspond- failure of the World Economy to dustry. This would be a welcomed here in Belize. And we note the ent relationships with our in- recover properly from the shock offset to the continued volatil- even stronger detriment of the digenous financial institutions. of the financial crisis that began ity in our commodities sector.” latter on public sector revenues This deprives our banks of the in the last part of the first decade Speaking about the im- in Trinidad and Tobago. As well, ability to keep US deposits, do of this new century. That failure pact that the petroleum indus- the oil conundrum has severely wire transfers, facilitate credit for the majority of us in CARI- try and market is having on our constrained the flow of resources card settlements for their lo- COM has meant slow growth, economies, Prime Minister Bar- to those of us that participate in cal clients and our economy. increasing difficulties with our row explained, “The global oil the PetroCaribe arrangements. The implications of this for our public finances and tremendous price rout has in particular been This is, of course, in consequence Continued on Page 16 New Soldiers of the Belize Defence Force (BDF) CARICOM Heads of Government at Official Opening Ceremony in Placencia Monday Evening February 15, 2016 Page 2 Capital Weekly Wednesday, February 17, 2016 NATIONAL UNITY NEEDED EDITORIAL Patriotism above Politics BELIZE and CARICOM stablished 43 years ago in 1973 through the Treaty of Chaguaramas, the Carib- bean Community (CARICOM) was a ro- mantic idea whose practical purpose has Eperhaps never been as pronounced as it is today. It is in times of adversity that one most appreciates the blessings of belonging to a family. And it is this sense of belonging and common purpose that Prime Minis- ter Dean Barrow was referring to when he remarked in his speech as the new Chairman of CARICOM at the The National Flag of Belize opening of the Twenty-Seventh Intersessional Meeting of the Heads of Government, “I’m trying to reiterate what we know only too well - the reality that forces us to acknowledge the limitations of individual small- ness is the same reality that obliges us to size-up both in terms of collective thinking and collective action.” The context is, of course, the existential threat confronting our region with respect to de-risking and the consequent loss of correspondent banking. It is a matter that understandably looms extreme- ly large on the agenda of the CARICOM meeting. The Treaty of Chaguaramas, as revised and signed by CARICOM Heads of Government on July 5, 2001 PUP Leader, Hon. John Briceno UDP Leader, P.M. Dean Barrow at the Twenty-Second Meeting of the Conference in Nassau, Bahamas, acknowledges being “mindful that By Delroy Cuthkelvin to reciprocate the goodwill and demonstrate some meaningful cooperation and joint action in developing trade rela- here are some issues patriotism, particularly as a suc- that require national tions with third states and in establishing appropriate cessful politician whose back- unity and transcend regulatory and administrative procedures and services ground and forte is business. partisan politics. It’s are essential for the development of the international As Luciano sings, “We’re Tlong been agreed that the Belize- all in this thing together.” For and intra-regional trade of member states.” Indeed, it Guatemalan Territorial Dispute sure, together is also the best, was never before as relevant as it is today, a third state and efforts to resolve it is one such if not the only way for us to get in this case being, in particular, the United States of issue as it threatens the very exis- out of it. Let’s hear it for Belize! America whose new regulatory measures present for tence of our Nation as we know it. (Reprinted from the Caribbean Community one of the greatest chal- De-risking and the con- Breaking News Belize) lenges since its formation more than four decades ago. sequent loss of correspondent banking services, which threat- E So, while the concept of a Caribbean Com- ens the survival of our finan- munity might have fallen well short of the roman- cial sector and the state of our CAPITAL tic dream with which it was conceived, the practi- economy, is the latest emerging cal benefits, now more than ever, are manifest. issue that transcends partisan As Prime Minister Hon. Dean Barrow put it, “To politics, and overcoming it will WEEKLY be driven back to a reliance on the less lofty but more require the same kind of na- tional unity. The Prime Minister practical virtues of functional cooperation, may be no appropriately characterized it Published By: bad thing. In saying this, I am perhaps merely repeat- as an existential threat, and a ing what was stated some time ago by a past CARICOM potentially huge national crisis. Roots & Rhythm Prime Minister: that our common cause effort sim- The General Elections ply cannot all at once incorporate the multiplicity of being behind us, the Govern- Limited our individual drivers; that concentrating on the less ment having renewed its man- date and the Opposition having poetic but more workable dimensions of our integra- reconstituted its leadership, the Editor: tion movement is both sensible and unavoidable; that timing is right and fitting for the Delroy Cuthkelvin to admit this is not to admit failure since prioritiz- forging of such national unity. ing the more readily successful cooperative ventures Like a true statesman, the Prime does ultimately lead to the optimum future deepen- Minister has congratulated him Email: ing that we both desire and deserve.” Well spoken, on his re-emergence, and for e.capwklybmpbelize @ Prime Minister of Belize and Chairman of CARICOM. the new Opposition Leader, gmail.com this is an excellent opportunity Wednesday, February 17, 2016 Capital Weekly Page 3 his past week, Climate made a commitment to do that CaribbeanChange experts from Convenes on Climatefor theChange Intended Nationally De - the Caribbean region termined Contributions, which converged in Belize for every country was to submit to Ta two-day conference. On the the Secretariat of the United top of their agenda were discus- Nations Framework Conven- sions on the COP 21 Agreement tion on Climate Change that which was recently signed in basically said, among other Paris by 195 nations. That agree- things, how they will reduce ment outlines a global plan of all their emissions of green- action to prevent the adverse house gases,” he elaborated. effects of climate change by For his part, Hon. Omar limiting global warming to well Figueroa emphasized the Belize below 2 degrees centigrade.