Caribbean integration: How the OECS can go beyond CARICOM

On June 18, 2024, the seven-member Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) celebrated its 43rd anniversary. The organization is arguably one of the most successful integration projects in the world, second only to the 27-member European Union (EU).

The OECS represents a deeper integration movement than the Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM), of which OECS member states and eight other Caribbean countries are part. The OECS was established in 1981, while CARICOM was originally established in 1968 as the Caribbean Free Trade Association (CARIFTA). Although CARICOM began 14 years before the OECS, the OECS has proven to be a more successful and beneficial integration project.

On October 19, 1978, at the 23rd meeting of the West Indies (Associated States) Council of Ministers (WISA) – a loose consultative group of seven islands in the Leeward and Windward Islands – Lester Bird, then Deputy Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, outlined the vision for the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). I worked closely with him in developing that vision.

At the time, only Grenada of the seven countries had gained independence from Britain in 1967. Dominica was close to independence, and became independent in November 1978. Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines were also considering independence, and became independent in February and October 1979, respectively. Meanwhile, independence for Antigua and Barbuda and Saint Kitts and Nevis was not imminent, although the leaders of both countries were eager to break free from the dictates of British authorities in London. The seventh country, Montserrat, also yearned for greater local authority over its affairs.

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However, it is clear to any informed analyst that while independence from colonial powers is an urgent priority, such a burden is unsustainable for countries with small economies and populations. Independence for these resource-poor small countries, coupled with the collapse of joint governance mechanisms, could leave them worse off than they are now.

Grenada is a classic example. Although Grenada had been nominally independent for 11 years by 1978, it continued to participate in several institutions established by the United Kingdom for the seven countries, including the common currency and monetary authority. Grenada did this because it quickly realized that it could not afford to establish its own currency, central bank, judiciary, and regulatory body. Especially since, after independence, it would also have to bear the costs of its own defense and foreign affairs.

In this context, the 1979 State of the Union Address proposed the “independence in interdependence” route, which included several key elements: consolidating the WISA concept based on the recognition of regional cooperation in a binding structure; consolidating the “special relationship” between the Leeward and Windward Islands based on geography, history, economic realities and common ties; and pooling sovereignty while retaining each other’s sovereignty and becoming stronger together.

This vision took root and two years later, in 1981, after extensive consultations and discussions among seven nations, the Treaty of Basseterre was signed, and the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States was born. The treaty was drafted by Abbas Bondu, a Sierra Leone constitutional lawyer at the Commonwealth Secretariat, who I accompanied in his consultations. The underlying theme of these discussions was reflected in the 1979 speech: “We are bound by indissoluble ties of paternity, history and tradition; in essence, we are one people.”

Four factors greatly helped in reaching the treaty. First, the status of then Saint Lucia Prime Minister John Compton and his commitment to the concept of “independence within a framework of interdependence” as put forward in his 1978 Antigua speech.

Second, the support of Vere Cornwall Bird, an influential leader in Antigua, for the idea of ​​shared responsibility and cost-sharing. Third, the support of Maurice Bishop, who led the bloodless revolution in Grenada that overthrew the tyrant Eric Gairy in March 1979, despite his uneasy relationship with the leaders of the other six countries. Fourth, the support of radical BroadCast Unitedlectuals such as Leonard Tim Hector (Antigua), George Odlum (St. Lucia), and Ralph Gonsalves (St. Vincent and the Grenadines).

On June 18, 1981, the OECS was formed, retaining elements of integration from its colonial past that took decades to establish for the European Union and that CARICOM has yet to achieve. CARICOM announced its intention to move toward a single market economy in 1989, but it took 22 years to achieve this, until it was “paused” in 2011. The integration mechanisms that the OECS retains include a common currency to facilitate the free movement of goods and services; a common monetary authority (later the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank) to ensure effective and respected financial and monetary regulation; a common judiciary; a regional safety system; and other regulatory bodies, such as the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority.

Between 1986 and 1988, Prime Minister James Mitchell of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines attempted unsuccessfully to launch an OECS political union, an initiative also actively supported by John Compton of Saint Lucia. Despite its considerable merit, the initiative ultimately failed due to political competition, which gave opposition parties little opportunity to participate in the development of the concept. As Ralph Gonsalves said at the time, “the balance of political forces represented by the various parties within and outside the government has slowed down or even stalled the unification process.”

Nevertheless, 29 years later, in 2010, the OECS governments revised the treaty, formalizing two aspects of the common market. They made the movement of people, including jobs, easier and laid out the principles for achieving economic union. While the latter is still a work in progress, the OECS is close to establishing a customs union.

Much work remains to be done to coordinate a common position on foreign investment incentives and to end competition in areas such as cruise tourism and citizenship investment schemes run by the five member states. The politics of competition for national interests has undermined the collective good.

Nonetheless, the OECS is now the most mature and successful sovereign state integration project outside the EU. It provides a model for the Caribbean Community, highlighting that the future success of the Caribbean Community, especially in addressing global challenges such as climate change damage compensation, international negotiations, access to finance, and threats to peace and security, depends on deeper and more effective integration.

(The author is the Ambassador of Antigua and Barbuda to the United States and the Organization of American States. The views expressed are his own. For replies and previous comments, please visit: www.sirronaldsanders.com)