Mexico Takes the Caribbean by Storm at 29th Council of Ministers!

Mexico recently reaffirmed its commitment to strengthen ties with the Greater Caribbean region at a meeting attended by representatives from twenty-five member countries. The meeting also addressed mutual challenges such as disaster risk reduction, climate change, and the issue of sargassum.

Daniel Cámara Ávalos, Director General of American Regional Organisms and Mechanisms, represented Mexico's Foreign Minister Alicia Bárcena Ibarra at the 29th ordinary meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS). This meeting, which took place on May 8th and 9th in Paramaribo, Suriname, coincided with the ACS's 30th anniversary. Colombia was elected to preside over the Council of Ministers for the 2024-2025 term, while Mexico was chosen to lead the Special Committee on Disaster Risks, among other key appointments.

Cámara Ávalos stressed the importance of the ACS speaking with a unified voice on behalf of the Greater Caribbean countries. He urged a collective focus on pressing regional issues such as combating sargassum, reducing disaster risks, and improving connectivity. He also highlighted Mexico's significant contribution to the Association through various cooperation programs and initiatives implemented by the Mexican Agency of International Cooperation for Development (Amexcid). Mexico has consistently advocated for the strengthening of sub-regional organizations like the ACS.

Victor Hugo Morales Meléndez, Mexico's Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago and Permanent Representative to the ACS, participated in the ACS's VIII International Cooperation Conference. Here, progress was presented on the initiative to declare the Caribbean Sea a special area. This initiative aims to promote sustainable development strategies through support and coordination with extra-regional countries and international organizations.

The Mexican delegation also held bilateral meetings with representatives from Antigua and Barbuda, Panama, the Dominican Republic, and Suriname to discuss various topics on the bilateral agenda. The member countries agreed that the X Summit of Heads of State and Government and the 30th meeting of the ACS Council of Ministers will take place in Colombia in 2025. The ACS, established in 1994, is a forum for discussion on cooperation, environment, and positioning issues in the Greater Caribbean. Its member states include Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela.