The area consists of 13 island countries, from the Bahamas in the north to Trinidad and Tobago in the south; Belize, which is geographically located in Central America; and the two countries of Guyana and Suriname, situated on the north central coast of South America. Many countries in the area share a typical African ethnic and British colonial heritage, while Cuba and the Dominican Republic were Spanish colonies, Haiti was French, and Suriname was Dutch. The dates of self-reliance of wesley group these nations vary from Haiti in 1804 to St. Kitts and Nevis in 1983. The biggest nations in regards to acreage are Guyana and Suriname, while those with the largest populations are Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti.
Politically, all Caribbean countries, with the exception of communist Cuba, have chosen democratic governments. Many of the former British colonies have parliamentary forms of government, with the exception of Guyana, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Suriname, which are republics headed by presidents. In terms of regional integration, 14 of the area's independent nations belong to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), with the exception of the Dominican Republic (which has observer status) and Cuba. CARICOM was formed in 1973 to stimulate regional economic combination. Some critics argue that it has been sluggish to promote combination, compared to other regional financial groupings, but progress has been made in approaching a single economic market and in establishing a Caribbean Court of Justice.
The 6 OECS countries also share a common currency, the Eastern Caribbean dollar, with financial policy handled by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank. The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), headquartered in Barbados, promotes financial advancement and local integration. With the exception of Cuba and Haiti, routine elections have actually been the standard, and for the a lot of part have been totally free and reasonable. In 2005, Dominica and Suriname held elections in May, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines held elections in December. Haiti was anticipated to hold elections in 2005, but significant issues and political instability resulted in those elections being postponed numerous times, until they were eventually hung on February 7, 2006.
Effective elections ultimately were held on August 28, 2006, without the political violence that some observers had expected. Looking ahead, parliamentary elections are due in St. Lucia by December 2006, while elections in the Bahamas, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago are due in 2007. (See for a listing of leaders and elections for head of government.) Although lots of Caribbean nations have kept long democratic customs, they are not immune from terrorist and other hazards to their political stability. In 1993, stability on St. Kitts was threatened following violent protests after contested elections; order was brought back with the assistance of security forces from surrounding states.
Previously in the 1980s, the federal government of Eugenia Charles in Dominica was threatened by a strange coup plot involving foreign mercenaries. And of course, Grenada, under the socialist-oriented federal government of Maurice Bishop, experienced a break from the democratic standard after it assumed power in an almost bloodless coup in 1979 and installed an individuals's advanced federal government. After the violent overthrow and murder of Bishop in 1983, the United States intervened to restore order and end the Cuban existence on the island. Many Caribbean nations experienced an economic downturn in 2001-2002 due to recessions in the tourist and agriculture sectors, although most Caribbean economies have rebounded given that 2003.
economic recession and slow healing. The banana and sugar sectors in the Eastern Caribbean were harmed by a hurricane in 2002 and a drought in 2003. Both sectors deal with unsure futures due to the European Union's strategy to phase out favored market access from former Caribbean colonies for bananas by 2006 and for sugar by 2009. The Haitian economy experienced decrease start in 2001, with political instability worsening already tough financial conditions in the hemisphere's poorest country. The greatest performing economies in recent years have actually been those of the Dominican Republic, sustained by the garments sector, and Trinidad and Tobago, with significant energy resources.
In 2004 and 2005, the area's strongest economic performers averaging growth rates over 5% for those two years, were Antigua and Barbuda, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago. Those nations not prospering in 2004 due to the fact that of devastating hurricanes and tropical storms consisted of Haiti, with a 3. 5%% decrease in gdp (GDP), and Grenada, with a GDP decline of 3%. For 2005, however, Grenada's economy rebounded with development over 5%, while Haiti's development was 1. 8%. In Guyana, financial growth has actually been stagnant or minimal over the past numerous years. In 2005, the economy decreased 3% because of high oil rates and floods, which early in the year seriously impacted farming and mining activities.
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Nevertheless, some observers have also been concerned about the region's high level of public debt, with several Caribbean nations having debt levels that go beyond 100% of their GDP. U.S. interests in the Caribbean vary, and include economic, political, and security issues. Throughout the Cold War, security issues tended to eclipse other policy interests. In the after-effects of the Cold War, other U.S. policy interests emerged from the shadow of the East-West conflict in the Caribbean that focused on concerns about the Soviet and Cuban threat. U.S. policy top priorities moved from one stressing security concerns to a brand-new concentrate on strengthened economic relations through trade and investment.
interest in the Caribbean. The Administration describes the Caribbean as America's "3rd border," with events in the region having a direct effect on the homeland security of the United States. It explains Caribbean nations as "crucial partners on security, trade, health, the environment, education, regional democracy, and other hemispheric problems." The United States has close relations with most Caribbean countries, with the exception of Cuba under Fidel Castro. The U.S.-Caribbean relationship is defined by comprehensive financial linkages, cooperation on counter-narcotics efforts and security, and a sizeable U.S. foreign support program supporting a variety of jobs to strengthen democracy, promote financial development and advancement, reduce hardship, and fight the AIDS epidemic in the region. Customizeds and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security. The CSI program helps guarantee that high-risk containers are identified and inspected at foreign ports prior to they are put on vessels for shipment to the United States. In September 2006, three Caribbean ports ended up being functional CSI ports: Caucedo, Dominican Republic; Kingston, Jamaica; and Freeport, Bahamas. Other Latin American ports in the CSI program are the Central American port of Puerto Cortes, Honduras, and the South American ports wesley mortgage of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Santos, Brazil. In the 108th Congress, a legal initiative required extra foreign assistance in order to improve foreign port security worldwide, however no final action was finished before completion of the session.
2279 (Hollings), in September 2004, which would have supplied for the Administrator of the Maritime Administration, in coordination with the Secretary of State, to determine foreign help programs that might assist in execution of port security antiterrorism steps in foreign nations. The act likewise would have called for a report on the security of ports in the Caribbean Basin, consisting of an assessment of the effectiveness of the procedures utilized to better security at such ports and an assessment of the resources and program changes needed to take full advantage of security at https://www.instagram.com/wesleyfinancialgroupllc/ Caribbean Basin ports. In the 109th Congress, 2 costs would offer foreign assistance programs for Caribbean Basin ports.
744 (Nelson, Bill), presented April 11, 2005, would establish a Caribbean Basin Port Help Program. Under the legislative initiative, the Administrator of MARAD in the Department of Transportation, in coordination with the Secretary of State, would identify foreign support programs that could facilitate application of port security antiterrorism steps at Caribbean Basin ports. The Administrator and the Secretary would develop a program for such support in consultation with the Organization of American States. In addition, the Secretary of Homeland Security would be required to send a report to Congress on status of port security in Caribbean Basin nations. S. 1052 (Stevens), the Transport Security Enhancement Act of 2005, includes an arrangement (Area 504) that would develop a program to assist in implementation of port security antiterrorism procedures in foreign nations, with particular focus on ports in the Caribbean Basin; this expense was introduced May 17, 2005, and reported by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transport on February 27, 2006 (S.Rept.
2791 (Stevens), presented May 11, 2006. Rising criminal activity is a significant security challenge throughout the Caribbean. The murder rate in Jamaica continues to skyrocket, with 1,445 individuals eliminated in 2004 and more than 1,600 individuals in 2005. With rate of 60 murders per 100,000 inhabitants in 2005, Jamaica had the highest murder rate worldwide. In late February 2006, Jamaicans were shocked over the ruthless killings of 6 member of the family, including 4 children in the western part of the country. High levels of violent criminal activity, including murder and kidnaping, also have actually pestered Trinidad and Tobago and Haiti. Even smaller Caribbean nations like St.
On April 22, 2006, Guyana's Farming minister, together with his 2 siblings and a security guard, were shot and eliminated in an evident burglary. Gangs associated with drug trafficking, extortion, and violence are accountable for much of the crime. Some observers think that bad guys deported from the United States have contributed to the area's rise in violent crime recently, although some keep that there is no recognized link. Jamaica has actually advocated the advancement of an international procedure relating to the deportation of bad guys. A significant issue for Caribbean nationsthe majority of which are net energy importershas been the increasing rate of oil and the prospective impact of such increasing rates on financial development and social stability.
Of these, only Trinidad and Tobago is a major oil and gas manufacturer, representing 60% of proven oil reserves and 91% of gas reserves in the area. The nation is likewise the largest provider of liquified gas (LNG) to the United States, representing 75% of all U.S. LNG imports. Apart from Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba likewise produces oil, however still imports a majority of its usage requires. Barbados also produces a percentage of oil, which is refined in Trinidad and Tobago, but it imports 90% of its oil consumption requirements. Venezuela is now using oil to Caribbean countries on preferential terms in a new program referred to as Petro, Caribe, and there has been some U.S.
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Considering that 1980, Caribbean countries have taken advantage of preferential oil imports from Venezuela (and Mexico) under the San Jose Pact, and since 2001, Venezuela has actually provided extra support for Caribbean oil imports under the Caracas Energy Accord. Petro, Caribe, however, would go even more with the goal of putting in location a local supply, refining, and transport and storage network, and establishing a development fund for those nations participating in the program. How old of a car will a bank finance. Under the program, Venezuela revealed that it would supply 190,000 barrels each day of oil to the area, with nations paying market costs for 50% of the oil within 90 days, and the balance paid over 25 years at an annual rate of 2%.
To date, 14 Caribbean countries are signatories of Petro, Caribe. Barbados, which already gets discounted petroleum rates from Trinidad, has actually decreased to sign the arrangement, and Trinidad, which has its own significant energy resources, has declined to sign. (For extra information, see CRS Report RL33693, Latin America: Energy Supply, Political Advancements, and U.S. Policy Approaches, by [author name scrubbed], [author name scrubbed], and [author name scrubbed]) The AIDS epidemic in the Caribbean, where infection rates are amongst the greatest outside of sub-Saharan Africa, has already started to have unfavorable effects for economic and social development in the region. In 2005, an estimated 300,000 adults and kids in the Caribbean were reported to be dealing with HIV, with the epidemic claiming 24,000 lives during the year, making it the leading cause of death among adults aged 15-44 years.