ECNETNews, NEW YORK, NY, Sat. Feb. 22, 2025: The latest CARICOM meeting has wrapped up, once again showcasing a trend of empty rhetoric and vague promises. These gatherings have devolved into political rituals where leaders deliver familiar speeches, produce communiqués filled with recycled commitments, and return to their nations without any significant progress.
The Caribbean continues to grapple with persistent challenges, including sluggish economic growth, unsustainable debt, rising crime rates, climate vulnerability, and trade inefficiencies. The Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME), aimed at regional economic integration since the early 1990s, has seen intra-regional trade stagnate at a mere 15-20%, far below the 60% achieved by the European Union. Crime remains a critical issue, with Jamaica reporting 1,393 murders and Trinidad and Tobago recording 600 in 2023 alone. Additionally, climate-related disasters have caused an estimated $30 billion in damages over the past two decades, yet CARICOM’s strategies for mitigation are both slow and underfunded.
Further complicating the region’s future are recent shifts in U.S. policy, raising concerns among Caribbean leaders. The closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), once a vital source of development funding, has sent shockwaves throughout the Caribbean. Although USAID’s influence had waned in recent years—primarily in Jamaica—its closure diminishes already limited external support for essential infrastructure, education, and climate resilience projects. Moreover, new U.S. immigration policies could result in an influx of deportees, exacerbating security challenges for Caribbean governments already struggling to maintain public safety.
The outcomes of CARICOM meetings resemble a familiar scenario where changing leadership yields no tangible results. Until leaders move beyond mere declarations and commit to actionable solutions, these summits will remain expensive talk shops. The Caribbean people deserve more than just words; they require leadership that delivers real change.
