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Canadian minister
reaffirms commitment to regional development
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Friday, February
20, 2009/
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GEORGETOWN, Guyana: Canadian Minister of State of
Foreign Affairs (Americas) Peter Kent, on Tuesday said
that his visit to Guyana has been productive and took
the opportunity to reaffirm Canada's pledge of fostering
development in the Caribbean and the Americas.
The Minister made these remarks during a meeting with
media personnel to brief them on his visit to Guyana and
entertained questions on Canada's bilateral and trade
relationship with Guyana and the Caribbean, among
others.
The country's interest in fostering regional development
was fortified in 2007, when Canada's Prime Minister
Stephen Harper announced a new Americas policy, which
recognises the long standing connection with countries
of the Americas and the Caribbean.
Included was Canada's commitment to deepen relationships
to improve some of the economic aspects, security and
democratic development to some corners of the region,
which needed to be bolstered, and also to work on issues
involving labour agreements, human rights and the
environment.
These discussions, he said will be featured at the
Summit of the Americas slated to be held in Trinidad and
Tobago from April 17 to 19. Kent noted that all
countriesʼ focus is on the international economic crisis
which has impacted on every economy.
The Canadian minister said that it is against this
background that Heads of Government will be looking at
ways to ensure that markets stay open, finance is
available for countries and that there is liquidity in
the region to help them get through the crisis.
He noted that, from Canada's point of view, they are
creating new trade agreements that will help to keep the
economies going, while at the same time ensuring that
people receive full benefits of trade and investments.
In response to a question on whether the new trade
agreement that Canada is working on with CARICOM will
impact the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), Kent
said that he has assured CARICOM and some of the
countries that have doubts, that the free trade
agreement that they are pursuing with the region is in
many ways different, more comprehensive and is an
agreement that is open at any time for adjustment.
The agreement recognises the fact that some of the
CARICOM countries have different degrees of capacity and
priorities in terms of trade and fulfilling the
expectations of free trade, Kent, said and the
agreements are similar to those with Peru and Columbia,
which addressed labour, indigenous people, human rights
and environmental concerns.
Canada is quite prepared to proceed at the pace of the
slowest member of the CARICOM, the minister noted, and
that would be in everyone's interest to formalise a new
agreement as early as possible since the current one
expires in 2011. This, he said, has been discussed with
President Jagdeo and CARICOM's Secretary General Dr
Edwin Carrington.
The new agreement is not tied to the Canadian
Development Fund and is one that will address trade and
development in the region, Kent said. He is hoping that
discussions can be forthcoming before the Summit of the
Americas.
On Guyana's fight against drug trafficking, the minister
said that, while more needs to be done, the drug issue
is not one country's problem, rather it is hemispheric.
On issues relating to Guyanese refugee status in Canada,
the minister said that immigration consultants cannot
guarantee access to a visa. This, he said is being
addressed by the new Immigration Act in Canada
Kent met with President Jagdeo and foreign minister
Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett on Monday. |
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