An Education Needs Assessment of CARIFORUM Firms

states. This subsection provides an overview of the skills demand stemming from regional and

national priority sectors along with identified skills gaps among the private sector, which

ultimately develops these sectors through their businesses and in turn supports national and

regional development.

1.2.1. Regional and National Sector/Developmental Priorities

CARIFORUM states, with which this Consultancy is concerned, can be sub-divided into two

further main regional subgroupings: the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). CARICOM comprises 15 Member States 8 and was

established in 1973 by the Treaty of Chaguaramas, which was later revised in 2001 to establish

the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) (CARICOM 2022b). The OECS was formed

in 1981 through the Treaty of Basseterre, later revised in 2010 and comprises seven protocol members 9 (OECS 2022b). Meanwhile, the Caribbean Forum (CARIFORUM) was established in

1992 as a basis for economic dialogue with the European Union (EU) and comprises the 15

CARICOM member states and the Dominican Republic. CARIFORUM has two key trade

agreements, the CARIFORUM-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) signed in 2008 and

the CARIFORUM-UK EPA signed in 2021 following BREXIT. Table 5 highlights the regional

priority areas of work for each subgrouping. There is substantial regional interest in sectors like

agriculture, the digital economy, renewable energy, the orange economy, tourism, and the broader

services sector. Many projects, especially those highlighted under the OECS in Table 5, are geared

towards modernizing traditional sectors and exploiting untapped opportunities in new niche areas

like blue tourism, the green economy and FinTech. When undertaking primary research, these

sectors can be used to gain greater insight into the region’s sector -specific skills development

needs.

Table 5: Regional Priority Sectors & Developmental Areas

CARICOM

OECS

CARIFORUM

8 CARICOM’s 15 Member States include A ntigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Haiti, Jamaica, Grenada, Guyana, Montserrat, St. Lucia, Suriname, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago. 9 OECS protocol members include Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

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