Saint Lucia: Philip J Pierre, the Prime minister of Saint Lucia, went to Georgetown, the capital of Guyana, with a delegation to participate in the meeting of the 46th Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community also known as CARICOM. PM Pierre was accompanied by Alva Baptiste, the Secretary of State, Elma Gene Isaac, Ambassador to CARICOM and OECS in the delegation.

The current event of CARICOM is organised in the capital of Guyana and started on the evening of Sunday, 25 February, and will be concluded on the morning of Wednesday, 28 February. The CARICOM or Caribbean Community is a union of fifteen member states which was built for the collective approach towards the political and economic challenges faced in the region.

Mohamed Irfaan Ali, the President of Guyana, delivered his speech at the opening ceremony that set the tone for future negotiations. President Ali is going to hold the responsibility of CARICOM President. In his authority, he will be joined by Carla Barnett, the Secretary General of CARICOM, and Roosevelt Skerrit, Prime Minister of Dominica.

The agenda of the meeting concentrated on multiple issues and important topics. The agenda of the citizens and regional security is kept at a high priority as the problem of security in the region is observed as a major issue.

In the meeting, the other major topics such as climate change, the situation in Haiti, the CARICOM Single Market and Economy also known as CSME, and other geopolitical issues were discussed by the leaders. It is said that the topics of the initiatives on strengthening food security and regional trade in the Caribbean will be the major focus of discussion at this CARICOM summit.

As per the reports, PM Philip J Pierre will not attend the entire summit and will return to Saint Lucia before the end of the event. The reason for not attending the whole summit is said to be some urgent domestic matters.

Due to this reason, PM Pierre will also not be available at the 8th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States also called CELAC in Saint Vincent on Friday, 1 March.

While PM Pierre will not be available to represent the island nation of Saint Lucia, Minister Ernest Hilaire will take responsibility for leadership at the summit as acting Prime Minister. He will also represent the nation in the sectors of Finance, Economic Development, Youth Economy, Justice and National Security.

The vision of Saint Lucia in this CARICOM summit is aimed at taking collaborative actions towards regional challenges to promote sustainable development of all members. The summit is expected to conclude with strong decisions for cooperation in the Caribbean.