Prime Minister Mia Mottley has called for deeper regional unity and solidarity among Caribbean nations, warning that small states cannot effectively navigate today’s complex geopolitical environment on their own.
Speaking to reporters at State House after her swearing-in ceremony following the Barbados Labour Party’s historic third 30-0-seat general election landslide, Mottley said the current global climate demands that Caribbean countries stand together to protect their interests and ensure fair treatment on the international stage.
“If ever there was a time for the people of the Caribbean to walk together, it is now,” Mottley said. “None of us can operate in this geopolitical climate as individual sovereign nations, small states without two things. One, solidarity, and two, boosting the international rules-based order.”
She stressed that the international rules-based order is critical for small states, as it creates opportunities for fairness and allows countries like those in the Caribbean to articulate their unique circumstances and challenges.
“It is that international rules-based order that allows us to be able to have an opportunity to be treated fairly, and to be able to have an opportunity to express what is it that is unique or special about small states,” she said, adding that small nations are often subjected to a “one-size-fits-all prescription” that fails to reflect their realities.
Mottley argued that such approaches limit the fiscal and policy space needed for governments to effectively serve their people.
“We are the victims of a one-size-fits-all prescription that really, really, really humbugs us and does not give us the fiscal or the policy space to be able to do for our people,” she said.
The prime minister also underscored the importance of regional solidarity in helping Caribbean nations manoeuvre and negotiate in an increasingly uncertain world.
“I hope that being able to show that with those two things that we can better manoeuvre and negotiate our way in a world now,” she said. “I’ve often said that we have to learn to walk in between the raindrops without getting wet, and that regional solidarity gives us that ability to do.”
Turning to shared regional challenges, Mottley admitted that crime was a major issue affecting Caribbean states, noting that while Barbados may not face the same level of violent crime as some of its neighbours, the problem remains a regional concern.
“The Caribbean has a problem now with crime,” she said. “Barbados may not be as bad as most of the other countries in terms of the incidents of crime, but the common approach that we take… allows all of us not only to be able to learn and share best practices.”
She referenced regional agreements, the Port of Spain Declaration and the George-Bridge Declaration, which she said have helped shape collective strategies to address crime and security, while also reducing domestic divisiveness that can hinder effective policymaking.
Mottley said this collaborative approach extends beyond crime, touching on areas such as social cohesion, expanding opportunities for citizens, and tax policy.
“We can do it with respect to how we deal with tax policy so there’s not a race to the bottom with each country competing against each other,” she said. “There are so many areas where at the national level can appear to be divisive, but when you recognise that the good and best practices regionally are there… it brings a different perspective on the part of individuals as to what is possible.”
CARICOM leaders are expected to meet within the next two weeks, with Mottley expressing hope that Barbados would take its place at the table to advance collective regional priorities.
“There are too many things that are affecting us individually and collectively as a region,” she said.
PM of St Lucia Philip J. Pierre greets PM Mottley during her swearing in ceremony. (SB)
Several regional leaders were present to witness the swearing-in ceremony including St Lucia prime minister Philip Pierre and Fred Mitchell, the Bahamas Minister of Foreign Affairs and Public Service, who congratulated Mottley on her decisive victory and reaffirmed the importance of regional cooperation.
“CARICOM is important for our foreign policy and as a region for us to survive,” Mitchell said. “Prime Minister Mottley has always been a strong advocate of the unity of CARICOM, and we look forward to working with her.”
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