Dominican Republic will host the CARIFORUM–EU meeting for the first time

The Dominican Republic will host this Friday, June 19, the Fifth Meeting of the CARIFORUM–European Union Joint Council, a high-level trade body that brings together 42 member countries, and which will meet for the first time in the country.

The opening will be led by President Luis Abinader, the Minister of Industry, Commerce and MSMEs (MICM), Yayo Sanz Lovatón, the European Union (EU) Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security, Maroš Šefčovič, and the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cyprus, Theodora Constantinidou.

This important event is taking place in the country at a historic and key moment for global trade, where major markets are seeking to geographically relocate their distribution centers and supply chains for raw materials and the goods they consume.

In that sense, the Dominican Republic, in its role as organizer and host of the meeting, strengthens in turn its commercial relations with its neighbors in the Caribbean and with Europe, which should increase and diversify its exports, the country’s main economic sector.

Sanz Lovatón highlighted the Dominican government’s satisfaction in hosting this meeting, noting that “it is a source of great satisfaction to host this fifth meeting of the CARIFORUM–European Union Joint Council, a fundamental space to advance in the strengthening of our biregional relationship and in the consolidation of a common agenda based on dialogue, cooperation, and sustainable development”.

Likewise, he highlighted that the Dominican Republic deeply values the strategic relationship between the CARIFORUM States and the European Union, based on the principles of mutual respect, solidarity, cooperation, and the promotion of the economic and social development of their peoples.

Within the framework of the Fifth Meeting of the CARIFORUM-European Union Joint Council, preparatory meetings will be held starting this Thursday the 18th, and the EPA-EU (Economic Partnership Agreement) awards will take place, an event that rewards the exporting or importing companies that best take advantage of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union (EU).

During the working sessions, participants will address fundamental topics related to the institutional functioning of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), trade facilitation, development cooperation, regional integration, and other priority issues for both regions.

About CARIFORUM–European Union

The meeting is part of the monitoring mechanisms of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the European Union and the CARIFORUM countries, a reciprocal instrument compatible with the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO), whose objective is to contribute to the reduction and eventual eradication of poverty through the strengthening of trade, sustainable development, and regional integration in the Caribbean.

The agreement was signed on October 15, 2008, and entered into force following the mutual notification by the parties regarding the fulfillment of the requirements necessary for its implementation. Since then, it has served as a platform to diversify Caribbean exports, improve regional competitiveness, and strengthen economic ties between both regions.

CARIFORUM is composed of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries and the Dominican Republic. The CARICOM member states are Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago.

For its part, the European Union is made up of 27 member states, with which the Caribbean maintains an extensive cooperation agenda oriented towards economic development, sustainability, resilience, and institutional strengthening.