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FORUM OF CARICOM DIRECTORS OF GOVERNMENT INFORMATION

SERVICES

FREE MOVEMENT OF PERSONSThe Vision and the Reality

CARICOM Community SecretariatKingston Jamaica16-17 March 2005

ANNEX V

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BUILDING BLOCKS OF THE CSME

• Legal Frameworks• Financial Resources• Human Resources• Social Assets

Sense of identityShared identity

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CONTEXT OF FREE MOVEMENT

• 400 years of economic articulation

• Community of Sovereign States

• Regional Market: minimum economic activity

• Lack of compliance

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LANDMARKS

1968 CARIFTA1973Treaty Establishing the Caribbean Community and

Common Market (signed at Chaguaramas, Trinidad and Tobago, 4 July

1989: Grande Anse Declaration1990-2002 Signing of Protocols leading to the Revised

Treaty establishing the Caribbean Community (including the CARICOM Single Market and Economy)

2003: Rose Hall Declaration 2005: Year of the CARICOM Single Market

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More Structured vs. ad hoc Framework: Rule and Role of Law (CCJ)

CSME more structured approach to service and entrepreneurship

Provision of Services

CSME competitiveness: restructuring approaches and increasing opportunities

Right of Establishment

-

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Provision of services

• Provision of services is a right (Art. 30)• All services will be open to competition except:

(a) those involving the exercise of governmental authority (Art. 30)

(b) those where there is a monopoly (Art. 31)• Non-discrimination applies to all laws, rules,

administrative measures and service industries

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Provision of Services: The Reality

Removal of Restrictions for -• Companies• Non-Wage Earners (self-employed persons involved in

industrial, agricultural, professional, commercial and artisan activities)

• Managerial, technical and supervisory persons• Spouses and dependant persons

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Right of Establishment

Obligations:• Permit establishment in all areas• Do not introduce new restrictions• Remove existing restrictions

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Right of Establishment

Who has this right? According to Article 32-• natural persons: citizens, nationals, residents• natural persons: self-employed persons, persons

engaged in non-wage earning activities of an agricultural, industrial, commercial, artisanal and professional nature

• companies and other legal entities, agencies, branches and subsidiaries

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FREE MOVEMENT OF PERSONS:

TWO REGIMES-

• Facilitation of Travel (Art. 46)

• Movement of Skills (Arts. 32, 34(d), 36 and 37)

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Regime One: Facilitation of Travel (Art. 46)

• Common travel documents

• Common landing documents

• National treatment at ports of entry

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Regime Two:Movement of Skills

- Companies and Non-Wage Earners (self- employed persons)

- Wage Earners (University Graduates; Musicians; Artistes; Sports Persons; Media workers; Managerial, Technical and Supervisory Staff of establishing entities

- Other special categories (under discussion)

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LIBERALISATION: The reality Removal of work permit:- Skilled Nationals Act for wage earners

and the self-employed- Self-employed - Other skills levels- Removal of existing restrictions for

persons establishing a business or providing a service

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Status: Movement of Persons

Right of establishment :- Barbados, Jamaica and Trinidad and

Tobago completed the removal of restrictions

- All other Member States to complete the process by 31 December 2005

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Status: Movement of Persons

Free Movement of Persons :- Common Lines implemented in all Member States- Suriname started with the issuance of a CARICOM passport- All other Member States to introduce the CARICOM

passport- Free Movement of wage earners implemented in all

Member States, except Antigua and Barbuda, Montserrat and St. Kitts and Nevis

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Status: Movement of Persons

Provision of Services :

- Barbados, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago completed the removal of

restrictions

- All other Member States to complete the process by 31 December 2005

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THE IMPACT OF FREE MOVEMENT

• Quality of goods and services

• New/non-traditional businesses

• Coalition of service providers

• Itinerant Community workers

• New Migration outlook

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INTERSECTION OF VISION/REALITY

• Regional transportation

• IT/ICT for Development

• Education and Training

• Cultural Industries

• Beyond consolidation of cultural bonds

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CATALYSTS TO ACTION

• Accreditation/ Standardisation

• CCJ

• New Executive Mechanism

• Restructured CARICOM Secretariat

• World Cup Cricket

• CARICOM/PANCAP

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IMPERATIVES FOR THE CSME REALITY

• GLOBAISATION

• THE FTAA

• SELF-RESPECT

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Some Action Points

• Information and Communication Network

• The role of GIS- Marketing and Public Education

• The role of the Media