President of the Republic of Suriname and Chairman of CARICOM, Chandrikapersad Santokhi, described yesterday’s Eighth CARICOM-Cuba Summit as “most productive”.
Mr. Santokhi made the comments during a press conference, at the end of the one-day meeting, at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre. He said a decision was taken at the meeting for CARICOM and Cuba to “further solidify” their 50-year familial bonds.
“We have concluded our Summit with a Declaration, which has been adopted, and this Declaration will guide us in the future, to strengthen our…relations as we move on to another 50 years of close collaboration,” the CARICOM chairman stated.
He noted that cooperation would be extended in many areas, including health. He added that closer collaboration with Cuba had been proposed in agriculture, as CARICOM moves to increase its production to meet its 25 per cent reduction of food imports target by 2025.
“Cuba has also been invited to participate in the CARICOM Ministerial Task Force spearheading this initiative. Cuba has also offered great assistance in the area of disaster management, as we both face the existential threat posed by climate change,” Mr. Santokhi stated.
He proffered the view that the proposed areas of cooperation would be of tremendous benefit to the Caribbean community.
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