Heads of Government of the countries of the Caribbean Community met in Barbados from 19-21 February 2025 for the 48th Regular Meeting of CARICOM. Under the theme ‘Strength in Unity: Building Caribbean Resilience, Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Development’, the Heads of Government discussed a number of pressing issues for the Caribbean Community, including: food and nutrition security; climate change and the climate finance agenda; current challenges in Haiti; security issues; digital resilience; foreign affairs and the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME). In addition, they addressed other important issues such as maritime and air transport and reparations, which also occupied the attention of leaders during the period of the meeting.
The opening ceremony of the meeting took place on Wednesday 19 February at the Lord Erskine Sandiford Centre in Bridgetown. Addressing the opening session was the Honourable Mrs. Mia Amor Mottley, Prime Minister of Barbados and incoming Chair of CARICOM, as Barbados holds the Pro Tempore Chairmanship of the organisation for the next six months. Also speaking were the Honourable Mr. Dickon Mitchell of Grenada, outgoing Chairman of CARICOM; the new Prime Minister of Montserrat, the Honourable Mr. Reuben T. Meade, and CARICOM Secretary General, Dr. Carla Barnett. Special guests António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, and Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, also addressed the ceremony.
Prime Minister Mottley, set the tone for CARICOM's focus for the next six months in her New Year message, when she stressed the need for the Community to resume full implementation of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy, mindful that ‘it is not simply an economic agenda, but a vision of unity and opportunity for small states to achieve greater economic resilience’. Central to the focus on the CARICOM Single Market and Economy is the full realisation of the free movement of CARICOM nationals, which Prime Minister Mottley said ‘is essential to unlocking the true potential of the Community's people and economies’.
Representatives from countries in Africa, the Middle East, Europe and North America also attended the meeting to broaden contacts with the Caribbean and explore the potential for cooperation. The event was a propitious setting for the signing of agreements, collateral meetings and business sessions, as well as for deepening regional integration, better promoting Caribbean interests in the international arena and determining the political guidelines of the CARICOM group for concluding treaties of interest and establishing relations with other international organisations and countries of the world.