The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States is exploring ways to lower food prices across the region by increasing imports from the Dominican Republic and reducing tariffs on selected goods, Prime Minister Gaston Browne said Saturday.
Browne said OECS leaders discussed the initiative during the 78th Meeting of the OECS Authority, where reducing the cost of living emerged as one of the bloc’s key priorities alongside energy cooperation and regional transportation.
According to the prime minister, the OECS Commission has been directed to identify products that can be sourced more competitively from the Dominican Republic and determine whether the Common External Tariff can be suspended on those items to make them more affordable for consumers.
“The OECS Commission has been asked to do a study to look at a list of goods that are competitive within the Dominican Republic, basic items, food items that we need, and to ask for suspension of the Common External Tariff to make sure those goods can come in even cheaper than CARICOM products,” Browne said.
He said the proposal is intended to ease the financial burden on households as Caribbean governments continue to grapple with the impact of global conflicts on inflation and supply chains.
“Again, this is especially important considering the escalation in the cost of living, initially as a result of the war in Ukraine and now as a result of the situation in Iran,” Browne said. “We’re looking for alternatives because almost invariably, whenever you have these global conflicts, these wars, the small vulnerable countries here in the Caribbean suffer disproportionately.”
Browne said diversifying the region’s supply chain would make OECS member states more resilient by reducing their dependence on traditional markets and helping to cushion the effects of international disruptions.
“We have to position ourselves to be a little more resilient so that the impact is not as great as it would have been in the past,” he said, pointing to the economic fallout from both the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine as examples of how external events have driven up prices in the Caribbean.
The prime minister said expanding trade with the Dominican Republic forms part of a broader OECS strategy to strengthen commercial ties with countries outside the traditional CARICOM market.
He noted that leaders also discussed increasing trade with Central and South American countries as part of efforts to improve regional food security and lower consumer prices.
“We recognize the importance of exploring alternative markets, especially in South America, Central America and the Dominican Republic,” Browne said.
If approved, the tariff changes could allow selected food products from the Dominican Republic to enter OECS markets at lower prices, potentially reducing grocery costs for consumers across the region.
This article was originally published by Antigua News Room. Read the original article here: VIDEO: OECS Studying Cheaper Food Imports From Dominican Republic to Reduce Cost of Living, Browne Says.