European Union Official Urges Caribbean to Generate More Trade, Investments

The EU´s top trade official said Thursday that decades of preferential access have not boosted Caribbean exports to Europe, and urged countries to end their economic dependence on single agricultural crops.

EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said preferential EU (European Union) trade policies had not improved competitiveness of Caribbean agriculture and may have actually discouraged economic diversification.

“Preferential access has not helped Caribbean countries develop to compete in a global economy. In fact, it may well have done the opposite,” he said at the start of EU-Caribbean talks on trade and development.

Mr. Mandelson said it´s time for Caribbean countries to move away from a reliance on single crops and focus instead on diversifying into other areas and attracting investment.

“The Caribbean needs to generate more trade and more inward investments,” Mr. Mandelson said. “It needs to diversify away from a vulnerable dependence on single agricultural commodities.”

Since 1994, the EU has provided the Caribbean with some €400 million ($482 million) to help banana-producing countries adapt to a fast-changing global marketplace. The bloc has provided another €50 million ($60 million) to foster regional integration.