The Integration Movement Flashcards
What is Regional Integration in the Caribbean?
Reasons for Integration:
The Caribbean is generally perceived as a natural regional entity and regional integration in the Caribbean refers to a series of attempts by Caribbean states to form a union in an attempt to create a political, economic, cultural or trade block that would better enable them to meet the needs of the Caribbean people and to provide combined political and economic weight to gain recognition and influences on the international scene.
Attempts at Integration have been made because:
-individual states in the region are small, with little politico or economic international clout.
-resources of individual states are limited.
-states have encountered similar problems and issues with trading partners.
Factors that Hinder Regional Integration
-Territories are at different stages of development, which gives rise to differences in priority and concerns about economic disparity, especially among the more developed territories who are reluctant to use their resources to support those that are less developed.
-Members of an organisation may be unwilling to cooperate for various reasons to do with protection of their own interests, autonomy, jealousies, competitiveness and so on.
-Conflicts exist between territorial and regional demands
West Indies Federation
The West Indies Federation (WIF) came into being in January 1958 as an attempt to create a political union among British colonies, with the exception of Guyana, Belize, the Virgin Islands and The Bahamas. A regional economic committee was also set up to investigate means of achieving economic unity. Britain retained responsibility for defence, external affairs and financial stability.
The thinking behind the WIF involved:
-a desire to strengthen the movement towards self-government with the hope that political union would eventually become independent of Britian.
-the fact that the federation was among the measures taken by the British government for better administration of the colonies and to save on administrative costs.
-there were insufficient communications between islands and unsuitable government and administrative structures imposed by the British.
Caribbean Free Trade Association (CARIFTA)
CARIFTA was created in 1968 following independence of a number of former British colonies- Jamaica, TNT, Guyana and Barbados. These new states were concerned with issues such as nationalism, self-determination and economic development. It was in response to this last concern that CARIFTA was established. The aim of CARIFTA was to promote economic and social development in the Caribbean region by encouraging free trade among members. This meant the removal of custom duties, taxes and arrangements that had prevented greater volumes of trade among the territories for goods produced within the region. Membership comprised the former members of WIF plus Belize and Guyana.
Challenges Faced by CARIFTA
-High unemployment rates and poverty in some member states and hindered an even distribution of economic benefits.
-A lack of authority and the means to implement regional decisions.
-Leadership issues, with Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica once again vying for the position of leader.
Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM)
CARICOM was created by the Treaty of Chaguaramas, signed on 4 July 1973 by Jamaika, Trinidad, Barbados and Guyana. It began operation on 1 August 1973. Currently, membership includes CARIFTA members as well as Haiti and Suriname. CARICOM wad conceived as a stronger form of integration than CARIFTA, with three pillars: economic integration, functional cooperation and foreign policy coordination. By the 1980s economic integration had stalled and so on in 1989 the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas established the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME). A new governance structure was put in place and the Caribbean Court of Justice created. Security was added as they 4th pillar of integration on 2007. The CARICOM Single Market was officially inaugurated in 2006, but completion if the Single Economy is still to be achieved.
Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS)
The OECS was established in June 1981 by the Treaty of Basseterre to formalise various aspects of economic cooperation and promote unity and solidarity between seven newly independent island states in the Eastern Caribbean. Following the collapse of the WIF, two caretaker bodies were created: West Indies Associated States Council of Ministers (WISA), in 1966, and the Eastern Caribbean Common Market (ECCM), in 1968. As the islands gained their independence from Britian, it became evident that there was need for a more formal arrangement to assist with their development efforts, so the OECS was established.
Association of Caribbean States (ACS)
This grouping was formed in 1994 by the Treaty of Cartegena to enhance copperation within the Greater Caribbean region and is made up of English, Spanish, French and Dutch speaking territories, with the secretariat located in Trinidad
Its five main areas of concern are:
1. To preserve the environmental integrity of the Caribbean Sea that is shared by the peoples of the region and to promote sustainable development of the region.
- To promote sustainable tourism across the region.
- To support and strengthen regional economic cooperation and integration through increased trade and investment, thereby improving the economic competitiveness of the region.
- To establish strategies for dealing with natural disasters, both in terms of disaster relief and dealing with the longer-term economic consequences.
- Facilitate language training.
Achievements and Challenges of CARICOM
Achievments:
-Reaching out to abd incorperating other regional groups into the fold.
-The establishment of the Caribbean Single Market Economy (CSME), the main aim of whch is to create links between Caribbean economies and enable economic needs to be met where there is a shortfall in one state.
-Free movement of Capital
-The creation of the CCJ and the movement towards establishing it as the final appellate court of the region.
Challenges:
-Difficulties in the implementing regional goals due to a lack of authority across the region and insufficient tools of governance and implementation.
-Differences and disparities in economic resources between member states.
-A lack of shared impetus across the region due to ‘nationalistic’ attitudes and no overriding desire to see the bigger picture among member states.
The University of the West Indies
The University of the West Indies was founded in 1948, and started with the Mona Campus in Jamaica, at the suggestion of the Moyne Commission, as a solution to the lack of training facilities for skilled workers in the region. The three campuses today continue to bring solutions to issues facing the Caribbean, although three are challenges along the way. It is an Associate Institution of CARICOM.
UWI Achievements and Challenges
Achievements:
-Offering a curriculum that is relevant to the needs of the region.
-Inclusion of Caribbean gender studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences as a way of promoting the inclusion of women in Caribbean development.
-Having distance learning as a solution for many working Caribbean people who seek training and an education in order to advance social mobility.
Challenges:
-Strong competition from foreign universities that offer degrees by distance teaching.
-Can be costly for faculties of medicine and law. The university has been finding it difficult to lower the cost of these programmes to increase enrollment of future Caribbean doctors and lawyers.
-Still no full integration of programmes across campuses. Students still have to travel across the region for some programmes that are offered only on a specific campus.
Caribbean Examination Council
The Oxford and Cambridge examination bodies were formerly used to evaluate and test secondary school students before they entered into the world of work or moved on to further their studies. Thus, there were two British examination bodies attempting to prepare local students to fill positions in the local workplace. This arrangement was untenable as the region sought a workforce equipped to address the issues unique to the Caribbean. It was on this premise that, in 1972, the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) was formed. It is a Community Institution of CARICOM.
CXC Achievements and Challenges
Achievements:
-Offers secondary-level certification, advanced proficiency diplomas and associate degrees.
-Ensures that the education of Caribbean people is geared towards the needs of the region, thus fostering economic development: examination by the region, of the region and for the region.
-Syllabus reflects learning from a Caribbean perspective.
Challenges:
-Many candidates from across the region still yearn for a more diverse evaluation, especially where languages are concerned. It is believed that continued focus by the CXC on using standard English as the official language for responses to exam questions is discriminatory.
-CXC is currently transitioning to become fully online with its communications and evaluation tools. Many schools in the region, however, have not yet found the resources to procure the equipment that would enable them to coordinate with the CXC.
The West Indies Cricket Board
Cricket was once the most popular sport among the English-speaking states and territories and could boast of being the only area of successful regional integration. The unification of Caribbean states into one team, challenging the likes of our former colonial masters, excited and satisfied the resilient spirit of Caribbean people and created a united Caribbean identity on the international scene. So important was the sport to the development of the game and to accept new talent to ensure the replenishments od cricketing talent. it also acts as the oversight body for all cricket related matters in the region.
WCIB Achievements and challenges
Achievements:
-Develop and promote Werst Indian cricket for the benefit an enjoyment of the West Indies people, clients and other stakeholders.
-A role in the development of a regional identity as well as an economic contribution to the region through staging competitions, for example the Cricket World Cup.
-The promotion of different formats, for example 20/20, in a bid to further popularize the game, especially to those that may find the longer Test format a bit too slow.
Challenges:
-Discord between the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) and the WICB regarding compensation packages for matches and the seemingly biased recruiting methods of the board have led to a string of disappointing performances from the team in recent times.
-Funding is increasingly becoming a problem as the sport is not as popular as it used to be and has a weak spectatorship and viewership compared to the other sports.
-Many players have claimed that the WICB has not done enough on organising and funding local competitions in a bid to discover and promote cricketing talent.
