49th OECS Meeting held in the British Virgin Islands

On May 20 - 22, the 49th Meeting of the OECS Authority will be held in Tortola, British Virgin Islands. The heads of the countries of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States will discuss the matters of the global and regional financial crisis for their economies, and the effects of the financial crisis on the main sectors including tourism and construction. They will also examine social safety net provisions for certain groups of population.

The 48th Meeting of the OECS Authority where the British Virgin Islands delegation also participated, was held in November 2008 in Montserrat. Currently, one of the main issues for discussion are international developments for the OECS regarding tax havens; the participants of the meeting will be also updated on efforts by the region to strengthen functional co-operation with other areas of the world, including Spain, the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and South East Asia.

Also, during this meeting the status report will be presented on the OECS Economic Union process, and actions connected with its development. Currently, the Member States of the Organization are rolling out national public consultation exercises which are providing their people with an opportunity to comment on and make inputs into a draft OECS Economic Union Treaty. The target date for the establishment of the OECS Economic Union is set on December 2009.

The chairman of the 49th Meeting of the OECS Authority will be the incoming chairman of OECS, Lowell Lewis, the Chief Minister of Montserrat. The OECS Member states are Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands.