Belize Advance Key Trade Initiatives At  CARICOM’s 59th COTED Meeting

A Belizean delegation, led by Minister of State for Foreign Trade Osmond Martinez, participated in the 59th Regular Meeting of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) in Georgetown, Guyana. The team engaged in important discussions about regional trade.

Among the key topics were efforts to strengthen the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), with a focus on improving the free movement of skilled workers and updating trade regulations. According to the government, the Belizean delegation also addressed recent changes in import duties on goods important to Belize.

The government said that a major priority for Belize at the meeting was the approval of the Partial Scope Agreement with El Salvador. CARICOM member states agreed to hold a special meeting in early 2025 to finalise this agreement, which was first signed in 2023.

In addition to the discussions, Minister Martinez met with Jamaica’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Kamina Johnson-Smith, to talk about poultry import requirements. He also discussed the possibility of exporting poultry to Barbados with Kerrie Druard Symmonds, Barbados’ Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, as the country is interested in importing poultry from Belize.

 

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