The issues were a common thread of speakers at the opening of the 52nd Annual General Meeting of the RNB on Tuesday, 12 August in Barbados, where the spotlight was placed on the anticipated increase in the need for nurses and midwives, and the need for guidance and action to mitigate the impacts of the shortage.

Dr. The Most Honourable Jerome Walcott, Minister of Health and Wellness of Barbados, delivered the feature address in which he lauded the achievements of the Regional Nursing Body over the past 50 years and its unwavering commitment to nursing excellence.

“The RNB now stands at a critical crossroad. You are not only being called upon to sustain the gains of the past, but to lead the transformation of the profession, to shape new models of care, and to prepare our nursing workforce to face complex health challenges ahead, which include, of course, ‘Dr. Google’ and the worrisome effects of climate change,” the Minister said.

He pointed to the “troubling trends” and “growing concerns” about nurse retention and called for courage and collaboration in charting the course ahead.

“Too many of our nurses are leaving for greener pastures, an issue that has become more acute in recent years. Small developing states such as ours simply cannot match the salaries and benefit packages offered by the larger, wealthier nations. As a result, we are facing staffing shortages that increase nurse-to-patient ratios, create longer shifts, which can lead to stress and burnout in some cases, and ultimately can compromise the quality of patient care,” he noted.

In her remarks, Ms. Alison Drayton, Assistant Secretary-General, Human and Social Development at the CARICOM Secretariat, highlighted the “critical shortage of these indispensable health professionals.” She cited the State of the World’s Nursing Report 2025 (SOWN), which pointed out that one in seven nurses globally was practising outside of the country of their birth, underscoring a growing dependence on foreign-born nurses within high-income countries.

“This dynamic poses significant challenges to the development and sustainability of health systems in low- and middle-income countries like those within our Region. Accordingly, it is imperative that the Region substantially increase its investments in the education, recruitment, and retention of nurses and midwives to safeguard the resilience and effectiveness of our health workforce,” the Assistant Secretary-General said.

Ms. Nester Edwards, Chair of the Regional Nursing Body and Chief Nursing Officer of the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Religious Affairs of Grenada, also warned of the consequences if gaps are not filled.

“While they are among the largest, if not the largest, segment of the workforce in our healthcare systems, the Region continues to face a perennial shortage of nurses and midwives with high attrition rates and migration to more developed countries. According to the SOWN 2025 report, we are unlikely to achieve the targets for universal health coverage if the gap in these shortages is not filled,” she said.

She called for redoubled efforts to find effective strategies to recruit and retain nurses and midwives, including those in the diaspora. “Improving working conditions and utilising technological advancements and incentives, including flexible working hours, should be considered when developing these strategies,” she said.

The RNB chair also urged capacity-building of the next generation of nurses and midwives in leadership, policy development, strategic planning, and research.

Agenda items for the three-day meeting include developing an action plan to address the migration and mobility of health workers in the Region, a review of the SOWN 2025, new developments in nursing, and the results of the April 2025 sitting of the Regional Examination for Nurse Registration.

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“As small states, we are vulnerable not just to global economic shocks and natural hazards, but to being marginalised in a world where power and influence often outweigh genuine need. That is why we must think strategically, act collaboratively, and remain focused on the values and interests that unite us,” Prime Minister Holness said.

He was delivering the feature address at the opening ceremony of the Forty-ninth Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM in Montego Bay, Jamaica, 6 July 2025. The two-day Heads of Government meeting is being convened under the theme, ‘People, Partnerships, and Prosperity – Promoting a Secure and Sustainable Future’ which Prime Minister Holness said, “captures the essence of our regional purpose.”

Focus on people

Geopolitical developments, and the security and resilience of the Region require a focus on people “because human development must be the centre of our integration,” Prime Minister Holness said.

He added that ensuring food security, access to decent work, climate protection, and opportunities for the youth who make up 60 per cent of the Region’s populace, were also key areas of people-centred attention.

Zeroing in on youth engagement in his address, the Prime Minister stressed that young people must have a voice in shaping the decisions that affect their future.

“Youth across the Region have thoughts and ideas about what we are trying to put in place for them and future generations. As key drivers and consumers of technological advancement, they hold immense potential to contribute meaningfully to our development goals. It is important that we engage them in a deliberate, sustained, and meaningful way. Let this meeting send a clear signal—that we view their inclusion not as symbolic, but as a strategic investment in our future,” he said.

Partnerships

The focus on partnerships takes account of the “network of trust” on which global progress is built.

“We need stronger ties within CARICOM and with strategic global partners in Africa, North and South America, Europe, Asia, the Pacific, and the Middle East; stronger ties within CARICOM and within strategic global partners in Africa, Europe, North and South America, the Pacific and the Middle East,” Dr. Holness said.

Prosperity

Inclusive and sustainable economic growth, the CARICOM Chair said, must remain “our shared ambition—one that lifts every citizen, especially the most vulnerable.”

“Jamaica will continue to champion initiatives that make these three pillars not just aspirations, but enduring features of Caribbean life, he pledged.

During their meeting, the Heads of Government will hold discussions on a wide range of matters including the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), transportation, telecommunications, industrial progress, climate change and climate finance, security, and the situation in Haiti.

“We have much ground to cover over the next few days. While our agenda is undoubtedly ambitious, it reflects a clear and purposeful vision for our Region—one grounded in our shared realities and guided by the need to ensure that our actions are responsive to the people we serve, especially our youth,” the CARICOM Chair said.

“It is also important to explore how the Region’s policymakers and development specialists can partner to exploit the untapped opportunities for securing positive educational outcomes, strengthening community development and facilitating greater youth engagement through chess.”

CARICOM Deputy Secretary-General, Dr Armstrong Alexis, believes that participation in sport can unlock young people’s potential to secure the Region’s future.

He shared this view at the opening of the CARICOM Chess Classic 2025, held at the Pegasus Hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, on Monday, 30 June 2025. The event was organised by the Guyana Chess Federation.

“Not only has chess been associated with increased intelligence and academic performance, but its characteristics as a cognitively demanding game have also made it of high interest in educational spheres, youth engagement, and in promoting mental well-being,” stated Dr Alexis.

He added, “So, this event goes beyond bragging rights and chess mastery. I do not think I exaggerate when I say that this Tournament is also about securing the Region’s future through youth development.”

Please read his complete remarks below.

Salutations

I am honoured and excited to be in your midst this evening. Thank you for the invitation and for the opportunity to address you briefly.

I wish to commend the Guyana Chess Federation (GCF ) for its commitment, not just to nation building but to an even more ambitious goal of deeper regional integration, by taking the lead in organising and hosting yet another chess tournament for the CARICOM Region. Last year, the Secretariat collaborated with the GCF in hosting the Inaugural Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Classic Chess Tournament under the umbrella of the 50th Anniversary of the establishment of CARICOM and this year, we are pleased to once again welcome the nine teams from eight territories in the CARICOM Region that have journeyed to Guyana to do battle for chess supremacy.

The Secretariat is thrilled to collaborate with the Federation to execute this event. We are keen on exploring how this partnership can be strengthened and integrated into the wider programmatic and strategic activities associated with the Community’s Sport Development Programme.

I wish to also commend the Pegasus Hotel Guyana and all sponsors for placing their support behind this initiative. The successful execution of this event truly is a demonstration of the role that partnerships can play in accelerating sport development in the Region.

The Caribbean Community places strong emphasis on sport as a vector of change in the Region. The Secretariat’s Sport Development Programme is strategically moving to mobilise partners across the Region in an effort to strengthen the governance of the sector and widen the spectrum of sports available to youth. We all know that participation in sport serves as a vehicle to mitigate against crime and other antisocial behaviour, especially amongst youth. I therefore urge not only the participants, but the organizers of this tournament to continue the effort to ensure that the young citizens of our beloved Caribbean continue to use sport and in this particular instance, Chess, as a means of remaining gainfully engaged, gain useful life skills and values, strengthen bonds, and impact positively on our nations.

Ladies and gentlemen, the initiative that we are gathered here to get underway is a consequential one. Given the rising concerns with youth disengagement in the Region and the persistent productivity gaps when compared with the rest of the world, mind sports, such as chess, offer solutions – if we are able to leverage them effectively.

So, this event goes beyond bragging rights and chess mastery. I do not think I exaggerate when I say that this Tournament is also about securing the region’s future through youth development.

It is now well known that there are various cognitive and non-cognitive benefits of chess. Chess promotes mental focus, strategic thinking, cognitive agility, impulse control, and a greater capacity to make decisions in the face of ambiguity.

The skills learned through chess are transferable to domains such as socio-affective development, memory and creativity, visuo-spatial abilities, problem-solving abilities, and even reductions in risk-aversion.

Not only has chess been associated with increased intelligence and academic performance, but its characteristics as a cognitively demanding game have also made it of high interest in educational spheres, youth engagement and in promoting mental well-being.

The CARICOM Secretariat is, therefore, happy to be partnering with Chess Federations and members of the Region’s sporting fraternity gathered here today, to explore how chess can be routinised as a sport to which all children have access from early and throughout the various stages of their development.

It is also important to explore how the Region’s policymakers and development specialists can partner to exploit the untapped opportunities for securing positive educational outcomes, strengthening community development and facilitating greater youth engagement through chess.

The Secretariat expresses well wishes to all the players and teams who are here to participate in this Tournament, and I look forward to seeing the knock-on effects that this year’s tournament will likely catalyse.

Thank you!

“We are not interested in inheriting a planet in crisis wrapped in promises. We want to help manage it—now.”

This was the call to action from St Kitts and Nevis CARICOM Youth Ambassador (CYA), Aquanjé Robinson, during his remarks at the opening of the Global Sustainable Islands Summit 2025, which was held in St. Kitts and Nevis from 25 – 30 May.

The summit comprised a series of in-person events dedicated to advancing sustainable development across islands worldwide. Building upon the momentum of the 2024 SIDS4 Conference, the summit addressed the pressing challenges faced by island communities, focusing on water sustainability and the energy nexus, agricultural resilience and climate adaptation, Climate-Health Interactions, and Geothermal Energy.

Vanessa Burke, Dean and CYA for the Cayman Islands; Samantha Rampersad, CYA for Trinidad and Tobago and Vice Dean of Regional Initiatives; and Joshua Andall, CYA for Grenada, also participated in the summit. 

Aquanjé strongly advocated for youth involvement in the Region’s strategy for climate resilience.

He stated, “We were born into this digital, climate-altered era. This age did not slowly reveal itself to us; it greeted us as a native land. How can we not be trusted to lead in the very world we were born to navigate?

So today, I issue a clarion call to leaders, policymakers, parliamentary secretaries and the like. Let spaces like these not end at speeches. Let them feed real policy. Let them open doors to planning, to budgeting, to impact. Exploitation is built into the DNA of humanity, and as long as we turn a blind eye to the vulnerable suffering under its oppression, we will never escape those origins. We’re not just leaders of tomorrow. We are capable contributors today.

Aquanjé provides an in-depth explanation of the importance of youth involvement in climate resilience below.

“This initiative was developed to strengthen youth participation and empowerment in regional development, a CARICOM Strategic Plan priority. We worked diligently to build a meaningful, impactful Programme that goes beyond workshops and policy papers. This Programme is about people. It’s about you, young professionals with fresh ideas, strong voices, and a deep commitment to the Caribbean. We need to embed your perspectives into the heart of our integration process.”

The opinions of young people in the Region are crucial to advancing the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), according to Ms. Beverly Harry-Emmanuel, Adviser for Social Development at the CARICOM Secretariat. She made this announcement on Monday, 2 June, at the Secretariat’s headquarters in Georgetown, Guyana, during the launch of the CARICOM Young Professionals Programme (CYPP).

The programme seeks to equip Caribbean young professionals with the skills to raise awareness among their peers and colleagues about the importance of young people’s involvement in the CSME. Over the next five days, they will engage in activities designed to enhance their knowledge of navigating CSME and be fully immersed in knowledge sharing with technical officers of the Secretariat on CSME implementation.

Ms Harry-Emmanuel explained that the CYPP is the product of careful planning and collaboration under the 11th European Development Fund (EDF): “Strengthening Framework for the CARICOM Integration and Cooperation Process” Programme.

She stated, “This initiative was developed to strengthen youth participation and empowerment in regional development, a CARICOM Strategic Plan priority. We worked diligently to build a meaningful, impactful Programme that goes beyond workshops and policy papers. This Programme is about people. It’s about you, young professionals with fresh ideas, strong voices, and a deep commitment to the Caribbean. We need to embed your perspectives into the heart of our integration process.”

Please read her complete remarks below.

It is such a pleasure to be a part of this official launch of the CARICOM Young Professional Programme (CYPP). I want to begin by offering congratulations. You were chosen not just because you are intelligent or capable, but because your respective countries believe in your potential to help shape the future of our region.

We invited every CARICOM Member State to nominate two outstanding candidates, and I’m happy to report that 13 of our 15 Member States responded with enthusiasm. The result is this exceptional group we have here today, a vibrant, diverse collection of young minds ready to take on some of the region’s most pressing challenges.

The CARICOM Young Professional Programme is the product of careful planning and collaboration under the 11th European Development Fund (EDF) Strengthening Framework for the CARICOM Integration and Cooperation Process Programme. This initiative was developed to strengthen youth participation and empowerment in regional development, a CARICOM Strategic Plan priority. We worked diligently to build a meaningful, impactful Programme that goes beyond workshops and policy papers. This Programme is about people. It’s about you, young professionals with fresh ideas, strong voices, and a deep commitment to the Caribbean. We need to embed your perspectives into the heart of our integration process.

Throughout this programme, you will deepen your understanding of the CSME, gain valuable skills in regional policy engagement, and work collaboratively on practical solutions to integration challenges. Importantly, the CARICOM Young Professional Programme also lays the foundation for the establishment of a CARICOM Young Professional Network, a space for continued collaboration, mentorship, and regional dialogue beyond the life of the programme. However, the impact of the curriculum will be exponentially enhanced through curious minds that are open to learning, flexible, exploring new ideas, asking questions, seeking new perspectives, paying attention even to those perspectives with which you disagree and being willing to shift gears.

Saying yes to being a part of this programme comes with high expectations. You are encouraged to continue to develop the attributes that would have brought you here this afternoon. Be resilient; the road to achievement is rarely smooth sailing. As you go through the curriculum remember that success does not come without determination, stay the course. We are counting on you to remain committed and focused. The success of this programme depends on your sustained effort.

Each of you must be highly regarded to have been nominated for this programme, an important consideration would have been your Integrity. Integrity is elemental to sustained professional growth. In fact, the success of this programme is dependent not only on your completion of the curriculum and the knowledge that you will gain about the CSME and its importance to regional integration, but on your success as advocates and champions of the regional integration movement. Your degree of success will depend on the level of trust you engender from those with whom you interact, and trust is heavily dependent on honesty, transparency and consistency in actions, doing what is right even when no one is watching, or no one else but you will know.

Young Professionals, I am sure that you are aware of the emerging global geopolitical revolutions, the increasingly precarious social and economic conditions and the catastrophic impact of climate change which all have disproportionally severe implications for the most vulnerable countries of the world, including the fragile, developing economies of our Caribbean region. These realities create greater and greater expectations and demands for real results at a faster pace. In such an environment, one of the most important yet elusive goals for professionals who are committed to making a difference is the achievement and maintenance of a healthy work/life balance, which is important for many reasons. Please remember that sustainable success comes from taking care of mental, emotional, and physical well-being. So, prioritize rest, set boundaries, and engage in activities that recharge you, so that your best selves turn up every day. Self-care is a good thing. Embrace it.

Ladies and gentlemen, as we launch this initiative, let us reaffirm our commitment to creating pathways for youth inclusion, leadership, and innovation. Together, we are building a movement, a new generation of regional champions who will help shape the future of CARICOM. Young Professionals, thank you for saying yes to this opportunity to be significant actors in the regional integration movement. Best wishes to each of you. Thank you.

“One of the outcomes I would like to see is that we arrive at a mechanism for capturing more labour-related data in terms of movement of people and intra-regional labour migration – to better understand the labour market in the Caribbean.”

CARICOM ministers responsible for labour are advocating for a mechanism to capture more data for decision-making within the sector. Sen. the Hon. Claudette Joseph, Attorney General and Minister for Legal Affairs, Labour and Consumer Affairs, Grenada believes that this is crucial to understanding the labour market and the impact of the movement of people within the Community.

She shared these sentiments as Chair of the Thirty-fourth Special Meeting of the Council for Human and Social Development (COHSOD) Labour held on 8 April in Georgetown, Guyana.

“I think one of the outcomes I would like to see is that we arrive at a mechanism for capturing more labour-related data in terms of movement of people and intra-regional labour migration – so that we understand the labour market in the Caribbean better.”

She added, “I know that CARICOM is assisting with developing a Regional LMIS [Labour Market Information System]. I look forward to taking advantage of the data that will come out of that as we refine the labour market and serve our people better.”

The Chair shares more of her expectations of the LMIS below.

Free movement and the Labour Market Assessment

CARICOM Secretariat’s Director for CARICOM Single Market, Leo Preville, shared that the CARICOM Secretariat, in partnership with the International Labour Organization (ILO), is undertaking a labour market assessment, which is expected to inform the development of a CARICOM regional migration policy – which was mandated by CARICOM Heads of Government in February 2019.

The Director underscored that assessing the Region’s labour market is necessary to develop a comprehensive migration policy.

He illustrated what the assessment would achieve:

“The labour market assessment being done now, with support from the ILO,is meant to feed into the labour migration policy component of our overall regional migration policy, so that is a critical piece of work. It will give us a sense in the Community, at the Member State level, of the structure, characteristics and nature of our labour market. What are the flows, what are the trends, what is the level of employment, unemployment and the various sub-sectors of employment, labour participation rates, etc.

“This work provides data from which we can begin to craft proper policies for addressing the labour market in the Region. Labour is the core of what our CSME is all about,” asserted the Director.

He provides additional insight on the labour market assessment below.

Editor’s notes:

In February 2019, the Heads of CARICOM Governments called for the development of a regional migration policy in coordination with relevant United Nations Agencies.

To fulfill this mandate, the CARICOM Secretariat, in partnership with the International Labour Organization (ILO), is undertaking a labour market assessment, which is expected to inform the development of a CARICOM regional labour migration policy.

The scope of the study encompasses the 15 Member States of CARICOM covered by the Regional Migration Policy Framework. The study is expected to analyse and present the data within the context of a single economic space, represented by CARICOM, with an integrated regional labour market.

The overall objective is to provide a comprehensive understanding of the economic, employment, labour and migration dynamics in the CARICOM Member States and to explore further the effects of climate change on jobs and labour mobility, consider casual chains, identify opportunities and challenges, and recommend possible strategies for improving productive employment in the Region.

The study is expected to critically analyse the demand and supply side of the labour market as well as intermediaries, institutional and policy frameworks governing labour, labour mobility and employment in the Region.

This was the consensus at the Thirty-fourth Special Meeting of the Council for Human and Social Development (COHSOD) Labour held on 8 April in Georgetown, Guyana, under the chairmanship of Sen. the Hon. Claudette Joseph, Attorney General and Minister for Legal Affairs, Labour and Consumer Affairs, Grenada. CARICOM Ministers responsible for labour, technical officers, and stakeholders in the Region’s labour sector participated.

Participants took advantage of the opportunity to agree on a unified position on critical issues surrounding labour in the Community ahead of the International Labour Conference (ILC), slated for 2 – 13 June 2025.

These discussions are happening during a crucial period of implementation of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME). In her brief remarks, CARICOM Secretary-General Dr Carla Barnett noted that most Member States had signed the Protocol on Enhanced Cooperation.

“This means that those countries that are ready to move forward with free movement will be able to do so. If everybody wants to move forward together simultaneously, that would be the most desirable of all the options,” stated Dr Barnett.

She added, “We look forward to the decisions of this meeting to guide us at the Secretariat on how we can help to ensure that the views of Labour Ministers – the positions with respect to labour in the Community – are properly supported.”

Dr Barnett provides further insight below.

The Chair also highlighted the importance of the discussion by Ministers on free movement, noting that CARICOM Heads had set a deadline for implementation of free movement and that the Region was close to achieving ratification of the Protocol.

“We discussed the question of the free movement of people. CARICOM had set a deadline to implement free movement. We are very close to having ratification of the protocol that was developed,” stated the Chair.

CARICOM Heads of Government adopted the Protocol on Enhanced Cooperation at the Thirty-Third Inter-Sessional Meeting held in March 2022 in Belize. It aims to facilitate deeper regional cooperation and integration among groups of countries, even if not all countries are ready to participate.

Listen to the Chair’s comments below.

CARICOM’s Assistant Secretary-General, CARICOM Single Market and Trade, Ambassador Wayne McCook, highlighted the significance of the progress being made by labour ministers on the Labour Market Information System (LMIS). He noted that this development was crucial to advancing the free movement of skills across the Region.

“Progress with that will help not just ministers of labour, but the Community as a whole to look at the way forward in terms of the free movement of skills across the Region,” stated the ASG.

Ambassador McCook explains the significance of the LMIS to CSME below.

“Our approach to how we treat with labour would impact how our people move,” underscored CARICOM Secretariat’s Director for CARICOM Single Market, Leo Preville. He shared his anticipation for consensus from labour ministers on a structured and sustained approach to engagement on labour issues in Member States.

“So as we go forward – even this first time we’re meeting in preparation for the ILC – will not be a one-off. It becomes a norm. It becomes the way we do business in the Community. It becomes how we inform ourselves of our positions in the wider Latin American Caribbean group in a coordinated manner. And all of those things eventually lead to the implementation of the CSME,” asserted the Director.

The Director provides additional insight below.

COHSOD promotes human and social development. Specifically, Article 17 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas states that the Council, which consists of Ministers designated by the Member States, will promote and develop co-ordinated policies and programmes to improve the living and working conditions of workers and take appropriate measures to facilitate the organisation and development of harmonious labour and industrial relations in the Community.

Sen. the Hon. Claudette Joseph, Attorney General and Minister for Legal Affairs, Labour and Consumer Affairs, Grenada, chaired the meeting, which focused on preparation for the International Labour Conference (ILC), slated for 2 – 13 June 2025 in Geneva. Technical officers and stakeholders in the Region’s labour sector also participated.

The Chair expressed her gratitude to ministers for their commitment to adopting a unified position on pivotal labour issues, which will be represented at the ILC.

“I am pleased that we were able as a body to craft a unified approach that we intend to adopt as we make representation at the ILC,” stated the Chair.

She provides further insight below.

CARICOM’s Assistant Secretary-General, CARICOM Single Market and Trade, Ambassador Wayne McCook, echoed the Chair’s sentiments and highlighted the significance of COHSOD-Labour to ensuring coordination within the Community’s labour sectors.

“At the community level, the Council that deals with labour issues is the Council for Human and Social Development. So, today’s meeting of the Council focused on labour issues and addressed a number of key regional labour market concerns, as well as the Community’s preparation for its participation in the International Labour Conference. In preparation for that Conference, the ministers would have discussed key items on the agenda, including the platform economy and biological hazards, among other things,” stated ASG McCook.

“So they would in those discussions have shared common perspectives and come to a common approach that they will take forward in the meeting of the ILC that will take place in Geneva in June of this year,” he added.

Listen to the ASG’s comments below.

COHSOD promotes human and social development. Specifically, Article 17 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas states that the Council, which consists of Ministers designated by the Member States, will promote and develop co-ordinated policies and programmes to improve the living and working conditions of workers and take appropriate measures to facilitate the organisation and development of harmonious labour and industrial relations in the Community.

1. The platform economy refers to economic activities facilitated by digital platforms that connect users, enabling interactions, transactions, collaboration, and innovation, and has disrupted traditional business models.  ︎
2. The informal economy encompasses economic activities not subject to government regulation or taxation, often involving workers and businesses operating outside the formal legal and regulatory framework. ︎

At their meeting in July last year under the chairmanship of the Hon. Dickon Mitchell, Lead Head of Government with responsibility for Science and Technology in the CARICOM Quasi Cabinet, the Heads of Government approved the Strategic Framework for Regional Digital Resilience 2025-2030.

Listen, as Ms. Jennifer Britton, Deputy Programme Manager, Information and Communication Technology for Development contextualises the Region’s digital status, provides insight into the vision of the Commission, and connects digital development to regional integration and development: