My OECS brothers and sisters, it is with great pleasure that I address you on the 26th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Basseterre, which established the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).

It was on June 18th 1981, that our founding fathers assembled in the St. Kitts and Nevis capital, Basseterre, and gave effect to the bold, just and historic decision to steer our Members States into a chartered course   of deeper integration, thereby strengthening our capacity to more effectively establish ourselves on the world stage.

As we reflect on this OECS Day, let us continuously focus on the need to recognize our achievements, and enhance our commitment to strengthening the positive image of our OECS even as we go about our every day lives and activities.

The OECS integration process continues to take on new dimensions. OECS Heads of Government, at the recently concluded 45th Meeting of the OECS Authority in Grenada, accepted the draft of the new OECS Economic Union Treaty as a basis for now engaging in wide ranging public discussion and debate, across the length and breadth of the OECS over the next several months.

The intent is to sensitize the citizens of the OECS on the Economic Union and to get their inputs to and support for this new direction in which we propose to proceed. We, the OECS Authority, are placing our confidence in the people of the OECS that they will help to shape the arrangements of integration in ways that would clearly contribute to their own development opportunities. We will work very closely with the Political Parties in Opposition, as well as other civil society groupings and the general publics of the OECS, to achieve consensus on the Economic Union.

We see this as transcending partisan and sectional interests, and dealing with how we in the OECS will manage our future in these very challenging times.  The Institutions of the OECS, -  the Secretariat, the Central Bank, the Courts, the  East Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority,  along with other regional entities and arrangements such as ECTEL, The Pharmaceutical Procurement Service, the (Aids) AIDS Project, our Overseas Representational Missions- all continue to serve us well and to reinforce our sense of common identity.

Even as we deepen our integration process,   and  extend our relations to new parts of the world these bodies along with others that may emerge, will be called upon to play  ever more dynamic, creative and effective roles in advancing our efforts at building  the enduring unity that is our collective cause. 

In this mission, each member of our OECS society is an essential element. The farmer, a participant in our many environmental preservation and agricultural development programmes; the consumer who enjoys an affordable price for medication through our joint pharmaceutical procurement programme and who continues to demand higher levels of goods and services; the athlete who challenges him or herself to reach new standards; the employee or employer in our tourism and other economic sectors; and the teacher and student through harmonized education programmes, are all combined in this glorious and noble endeavour.

We in the OECS must continue to exude pride in our numerous accomplishments. Citizens of our Member States can travel easier using valid picture identification. Our new OECS Flag and OECS Song are symbols of the OECS model of integration. Several of our Member States were part of the recent historic staging of the third biggest international sporting event – the ICC cricket world cup. Our Export Development Unit is helping the private sector to acquire or sustain World Class Manufacturing Standards. We continue to assert ourselves in the world, for example playing a very vital role in the WTO trade negotiations in Geneva with the Group of Small and Vulnerable Economies.

Respected International bodies such as the World Bank and the Commonwealth Secretariat have held up the achievements of the OECS as a model that other parts of the developing world could do well to emulate. Above all, we are blessed with peaceful people,  beautiful landscapes and marine assets that are so very attractive to the hundreds of thousands of people who visit with us every year.  We must give thanks for the rich blessings that we have and the wisdom we have shown in the collective use to which we have put them.

I say this, because these and other attributes in our progress as a united region come in the face of some arduous internal and external challenges. One can never overemphasize the serious threat that HIV and AIDS (Aids) pose to our Member States.  This dreaded disease threatens our very economic strength as a region. A 2002 study notes that out of a total OECS population of 584,000, 50% were under the age of 25 years.

Experts constantly remind us that this age group is among the most vulnerable regarding HIV/AIDS infections. Close to this is unemployment where youth in the age group of 15-24 years are most affected. Based on these facts it is clear that HIV/AIDS (Aids) and unemployment in the OECS are a dangerous mix that can yield catastrophic results.

Brothers and sisters of the OECS I have a passion for youth development and this is why I did not hesitate to serve as patron for the OECS Youth initiative. I was moved by the many interventions during the historic meeting on OECS Youth in 2006 as part of the OECS 25th Anniversary observance.

I therefore pledge to do my best to make our environment more protective of young people. I encourage youth organizations to network and advise leaders on reducing problems facing youth.

As we encounter daily environmental, economic, political and social hurdles, let us continue to confront them through common action. Let us continue to be steadfast in our resilience. Our bothers and sisters in Grenada have shown us what we are capable of, given the level of their recovery after the devastation from two hurricanes such a short time ago. When we look at their example, we should all say with a sense of assurance, “we can do it!”  In so doing I ask that you join us in the movement towards an OECS Economic Union. Be a part of our public awareness consultations. It is your voice that will inform the direction to a higher quality of life in the OECS.

So as we mark 26 years of close cooperation let us embrace the future with pride, confidence and continued collaboration even during the toughest of times, and build on the legacy created by those who led the way.

A happy OECS 26th Anniversary to you.