French Guiana has officially become the eighth Associate Member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), marking another step in the regional bloc’s efforts to deepen cooperation across the Caribbean and strengthen ties with its neighbouring territories.
The agreement granting French Guiana Associate Membership was signed on Monday, July 7, by CARICOM Chairman and Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, Hon. Philip J. Pierre, and President of the Territorial Collectivity of French Guiana, His Excellency Gabriel Serville.
The signing took place ahead of the Fifty-First Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM, currently underway in Saint Lucia, where French Guiana will participate for the first time as an Associate Member.
French Guiana now joins Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Curaçao, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and Sint Maarten as CARICOM’s Associate Members.
Founded on July 4, 1973, with the signing of the Treaty of Chaguaramas in Trinidad and Tobago, CARICOM was established by the leaders of Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago. The founding leaders were Prime Minister Forbes Burnham of Guyana, Errol Barrow of Barbados, Michael Manley of Jamaica, and Dr. Eric Williams of Trinidad and Tobago.
The regional integration movement was created to promote economic integration and cooperation among Caribbean states, coordinate foreign policy, improve functional cooperation in areas such as education, health and security, and enhance the region’s collective voice in international affairs.
Today, CARICOM comprises 15 full Member States and eight Associate Members.
The 15 full Member States are 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.
Montserrat, although a British Overseas Territory, enjoys full membership in the Community.
Associate Membership allows non-sovereign Caribbean territories to participate in many aspects of CARICOM’s work and regional integration initiatives, although they do not exercise voting rights in the Conference of Heads of Government.
French Guiana’s accession expands CARICOM’s associate membership and is expected to strengthen collaboration in areas including trade, agriculture, environmental protection, transportation, education, health, disaster resilience and sustainable development, while fostering closer links between the French territory and the wider Caribbean Community.
The development comes as regional leaders gather in Saint Lucia to deliberate on key issues affecting the Caribbean, including regional security, climate change, economic resilience, food security, energy, and the continued advancement of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).
