Enill: Caricom must be strong in global finance

Addressing a national consultation on the second draft of the Caricom Financial Services Agreement at the Cascadia Hotel in St Ann’s yesterday, Enill urged the participants to ensure that the final agreement "is in the best interest of all member states."

"I hope that at the end of it all, we would have spent some time in continuing to create a financial architecture for this our Caricom space which will have the blessings of all our territories.

"The end game being to ensure that as the world moves through its paces of globalisation, and as we continue to participate in the global arena, we participate as equals and from a position of strength," the minister stated. Enill recalled that consultation on a Caricom Financial Services Agreement was held in Trinidad and Tobago in February 2004 and a draft agreement was subsequently developed by the Economic Intelligence and Policy Unit of the Caricom Secretariat in November 2004. "This agreement is intended to move the integration process beyond the provision of national treatment and the rights of establishment by addressing several barriers and operational differences in the regional financial market," he said.

Enill added that the agreement will seek to establish general consensus on several areas such as anti-money laundering, transparency and corporate governance, offshore financial services, national treatment and measures for dispute settlement.

Regarding dispute settlement, Enill said participants must determine if the proposed mechanism is appropriate and whether the agreement falls under the purview of the Caribbean Court of Justice.