An open letter to CARICOM
20 May 2026
Dr. Carla Barnett
CARICOM Secretary General
CARICOM Secretariat
Turkeyen Georgetown Guyana
Dear Dr Barnett The Caribbean Network for Solidarity with Cuba (CNSC) is writing to you to find out what progress has been made in implementing CARICOM’s promise to provide our sister country of Cuba with much needed humanitarian aid.
As you are aware, the current US government has intensified its over 6 decades long blockade of Cuba with the cruel intention of causing maximum suffering to the people of that country. Central to this effort has been the recently established fuel blockade which has resulted in frequent power blackouts. This has caused real hardship particularly in hospitals, clinics, care homes for the elderly and other institutions that cater to the needs of the most vulnerable.
To date, Cuba has been an exemplary member of our Caribbean family and has always been there for us in our times of need, whether in responding to natural and medical disasters or providing us with support in the fields of education, medicine and professional training. Therefore, people across the region welcomed the announcement made on 27 February by CARICOM Chairman, Dr. Terrance Drew, that the Heads of Government meeting in St Kitts and Nevis had agreed to provide Cuba with humanitarian support. It is now nearly 3 months since this announcement was made and as far as we are aware, no humanitarian support has arrived in Cuba from CARICOM collectively or from individual CARICOM governments. This is in sharp contrast to the efforts of the solidarity groups across the region, which with very limited resources, are already delivering humanitarian support to the Cuban people.
On the 24 March, CARICOM issued a press statement in which it stated that “CARICOM governments are preparing to dispatch humanitarian aid to Cuba” and listed this aid as consisting of “Items such as powdered milk, including baby formula; non-perishables such as beans, wheat flour, rice, and canned goods; basic medical supplies, solar panels, batteries, and water tanks”. It is now over 6 weeks since this public commitment was made but there is no news that any of this humanitarian aid has actually reached Cuba.
CNSC is therefore asking that you publicly clarify what is currently happening with CARICOM’s humanitarian support for Cuba and when this aid will actually be delivered to the Cuban people. We believe that funding such humanitarian aid to Cuba would be a prudent use of our tax dollars to subsidize solidarity to Cuba that has always been there for Caribbean people.
Yours sincerely
Tee White for Caribbean Network for Solidarity with Cuba (CNSC)
This letter is supported by:
Antigua and Barbuda Cuba Friendship Association
Barbados Cuba Friendship Association
Jamaica Cuba Friendship Association
St Lucia Cuba Friendship Association
Trinidad & Tobago Cuba Friendship Association
Sent via email to:
Dr. Carla Barnett (CARICOM Secretary General) osg@caricom.org & carisecl@caricom.org
Dr. Terrance Drew (Chair of CARICOM) pmo@gov.kn