Projects of the Caribbean Community include:
Single market and economy
Three countries—Barbados, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago—had originally set 5 January 2005 as the date of signing the agreement relating to the CARICOM single market and economy (CSME). The ceremony had then been rescheduled to coincide with 19 February 2005 inauguration of the new CARICOM-headquarters building in Georgetown, Guyana, but this was later postponed after a ruling by the London Privy council caused alarm to several Caribbean countries.
The prospect was that ten of the remaining twelve CARICOM countries would join the CSME by the end of 2005. The Bahamas and Haiti were not expected to be a part of the new economic arrangement at that time. The CARICOM Secretariat maintains frequent contact with another organisation named the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), which represents seven Full members and two Associate members of CARICOM in the Eastern Caribbean. Many of the OECS countries are seeking to maintain themselves as a micro-economic grouping within CARICOM.
The CARICOM Single Market and Economy treaty finally went into effect on 1 January 2006, with Barbados, Belize, Jamaica, Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago as the first full members. On 3 July 2006, the total membership was brought up to twelve when Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines became full members. The British overseas territory of Montserrat is seeking permission from the United Kingdom to become a part of the single market; Haiti will not join the market initially because of its difficult internal political situation; and the Bahamas will not join because of local opposition to a provision that allows skilled workers to move more easily among nations.
Common passport
As of early 2009 twelve Member States have introduced CARICOM passports. These states are Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago.Lesser Known Facts about the CSM CARICOM members yet to issue the common passports are Bahamas, Montserrat and Haiti. Citizens of Montserrat are citizens of the United Kingdom, so it is unlikely that the common passport will be introduced there.
The CARICOM passport creates awareness that CARICOM nationals are nationals of the Community, as well as a specific country.
Reciprocal social-security agreement
On 1 March 1996, the CARICOM Agreement on Social Security was signed in Georgetown, Guyana and it came into effect on 1 April 1997.CSME Online: Social Security From that date persons have been eligible to apply for and receive benefits under the Agreement.KNOW YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY: The Caricom Reciprocal Agreement and you The agreement is intended to protect CARICOM nationals' entitlement to benefits and provide equality of treatment when moving from one country to another. The agreement is seen as key in facilitating the free movement of labour within the CARICOM Single Market, but it applies to all persons who are moving to work or have worked in two or more countries that have implemented the agreement including any which are not a part of the Single Market.Social Security in CARICOM
The agreement is in effect in the following CARICOM Member States: Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and The Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago. It is not in effect in Suriname or Haiti.
The agreement allows CARICOM countries to coordinate their social security programmes and provides for payments of death benefits and of pensions for invalidity, disablement, old age/retirement and survivors’ benefits.
A CARICOM national who is a wage earner, must be insured in the Member State where he or she is employed and must therefore make contributions to the respective social security organization. He/She is entitled to the same benefits as nationals of the host country.CARICOM: Social Security
When going to another CARICOM member state to work, persons should inform the directors of the social security organizations in their home country and host country. The date of departure and overseas address should be presented. This enables the accurate capturing of contributions and payment of benefits while residing in the host country. One should also inform that organization of any subsequent change of address. Upon returning to the usual place of residence, the home organization should be notified.
If a CARICOM national is insured under the scheme of one country, e.g. Jamaica, and at the same time that national is permitted to voluntary contribute to another compulsory insurance scheme, the national will be insured under the first country's scheme only (in this case Jamaica).
If the CARICOM national is permitted to voluntarily contribute to two or more compulsory insurance schemes, that national is entitled to be insured under the scheme in the country where he/she resides. If he/she does not live in one of the CARICOM countries, he/she should be insured under the scheme of the country where he/she last worked.
Migrant or travelling workers are usually at a disadvantage when they leave a particular country without making sufficient contributions to qualify for benefits. The agreement therefore also ensures that the rights and obligations of certain workers are secured. Hence, the social-security schemes require all employed persons to register and to make National Insurance contributions to the respective social security organization. The categories of workers covered under the Agreement are as follows:Jamaica Ministry of Labour – Reciprocal Social Security Agreements
Workers in Transnational Enterprises Workers in International Transport Workers on Ships Workers in Diplomatic Missions, Consulates and International Organizations Self-employed Persons Itinerant Workers (Workers travelling from country to country)
The Agreement protects all entitlements to long term benefits by providing for the totaling of all the contributions which were paid to the respective Social Security Organizations in Member States, where a national previously worked. Suriname is the exception since it does not have a comparable social security system.
In the event of a withdrawal from or termination of the CARICOM Social Security Agreement, all rights acquired will be maintained/honoured and negotiations will take place for the settlement of any rights.Government of Dominica: Layman's Booklet on the CARICOM Social Security Agreement
Caribbean exchange network (CXN)
The proposal for a regional trading platform or stock exchange was initially raised in 1989, and then again in the 1990s during ongoing discussions for the Caribbean Single Market and Economy, but it was not realized.Caribbean Stock Exchange to make January debut In 2006 the idea was again brought up in a regional stock market conference. At the conference it was noted that at the time the region contained several small separate Caribbean stock exchanges including that of Bahamas, Barbados, the Eastern Caribbean (itself a regional securities exchange), Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad & Tobago, each with relatively high transaction costs, low liquidity, a relatively small number of listed companies, and a few securities dominating trading on an exchange, while legislation and trading rules varied across the region.A Caribbean Stock Exchange charting the way forward It was argued that the best way to improve liquidity was through a common trading platform approach, with CARICOM-wide connectivity using state-of-the-art technology connecting local brokers (intermediaries) in the multiple stock markets through a single network. This would create a fair and well-informed market for financial securities, and ultimately an internationally competitive market. By interconnecting the stock exchanges of the region a single regional capital market would be created. It would also avoid one of the main hurdles against having a single Caribbean Stock Exchange, that being the fact that the established Exchanges were not likely to make themselves voluntarily redundant. It would also widen the scope of operations of all the regional exchanges as each participating exchange would give their brokers access to the companies listed on all the others' boards.
Work continued on the establishment of the system, now dubbed the Caribbean Exchange Network (CXN) with initial hopes that it could be implemented by late 2007 with approximately 120 listed securities. However that timetable was dependent on how quickly securities regulators in Jamaica, Trinidad and Barbados could sign off on the enabling documents and agreements on which they have asked for clarifications.Caribbean stock exchange 'ready' By December 2007 regulators were still mulling over the documents and the hope was for full implementation in 2008.Groundwork being laid for Caribbean Exchange Network The 3 April 2008 start-up date was missed as a result of takeover activity in the region's capital markets (involving companies such as WIBISCO, FirstCaribbean, Barbados Farms, the takeover bidding process for Barbados Shipping & Trading by Trinidadian industrial giant Neal & Massy and Royal Bank of Canada's buyout of RBTT) and delay on the part of regulators.Caribbean Exchange Network misses start-up date An agreement in 2008 to have the Bank of Nova Scotia as the settlement bank for regional stock market tradesBNS contracted as settlement bank for CXN also later fell through. Instead of a single settlement bank, each member dealer will now have to make arrangement to get their transaction settled either with their local national central bank or any other commercial bank of choice Up to 2008, the Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago stock exchanges had collectively invested US$150,000 on the project.Update On The Implementation Of Caribbean Exchange Network (CXN)
All outstanding issues were finally settled in January 2011 and the CXN got the approval of the various regional regulators and made its operational debut.JMMB, Scotia Apply For Broker Registration On CXN The CXN trading platform and support infrastructure had been in place since 2007. It is now expected that trading on the platform will begin in 2012. The CXN will allow brokers in each jurisdiction to access all the stock within the region from their desks, irrespective of where they are. But in the absence of a monetary union for Caricom they must transact the business in the currency of the home market of the listed security – for example, a Jamaican buying a TT stock would have to settle in TT dollars, with the security being held in the TT central securities depository.