SALUTATIONS

WELCOME

On behalf of the Government and people of Dominica, I wish to welcome each and every one of you to this ceremony to launch the Non-State Actors Advisory Panel. Those of you who have not yet grasped the importance of this new organization may be asking why the fanfare. I therefore want to stress up front that I consider this Panel vital for the sustainable development of Dominica and I hope that by the end of the proceedings you will all agree with me that this new forum warrants the attention that is being paid to it. Your presence here underscores the point.

CONGRATULATIONS

I must start by congratulating the members of the Panel. You have been carefully selected to serve in this capacity. You have gone through a long vetting process. I have looked at the rigorous criteria for selection laid down by the European Union and the Report of the Consultants and I know that the process has been thorough and time-consuming. You are now poised to help make history in Dominica and I thank you in advance for going beyond the call of duty, for making the sacrifices in time and effort, to help advance Dominica on the path to prosperity.

I would also like to thank the European Union, represented here by Mr. Amos Tincani, the Head of Delegation of the European Commission in Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean for being a loyal and generous partner in development. Without your support during critical stages of our recent history, and in particular during the past 6 years, Dominica would still be in a state of fiscal chaos and uncertainty. I can assure you that history will eventually record the role you have played in helping us to stabilize our economy and hold our society together. But my Government is so indebted to you that we have just put in place a Public Relations project that will before long start to sensitise and educate our people to the full extent of your contributions to the ongoing development of Dominica.

The other unsung partner in development present here today is the National Authorizing Office. You have been a faithful and prudent servant of the people of Dominica and I congratulate you for the meticulous way you have gone about your work. You have with patience and persistence ploughed through the vagaries of the procedures of the European Commission which I am told, are regarded as a veritable minefield within the ACP. In particular, you have managed the process that has brought us to this historic signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, and the launch of the NSA Panel.

Thank you all.

RATIONALE

In launching this Panel the Government of Dominica is further expressing its commitment to Article VI of Title 1 of the Cotonou Partnership Agreement. This section rightly identifies Non-State Actors as key partners with the State, involved in the co-operation agreement with the European Union. This represents one of the significant departures from what obtained under the various Lome Conventions.

Let me also say that this effort to involve Non-State or Civil Society Organizations in the decision making process is consistent with the policy of the Dominica Labour Party led administration. Ever since the country turned to us for leadership at the beginning of the new century, we have stressed the need for mass involvement in the economic and social reconstruction of Dominica. We have always made it clear that we cannot rebuild Dominica without harnessing the hidden energy, creativity and other resources of our people. I therefore want to reiterate that this Government sees itself as a facilitator that creates the conditions for private sector and other organizations of the people to help create and then distribute wealth and related resources to the people. This Panel, made up of representatives of Civil Society and private sector organizations, therefore provides a forum at which issues of national importance could be discussed by all the partners of development and sound advice given to the Government. This is the essence of Democracy and Good Governance.

This Panel is also expected to act as a channel of communication between Government and the people. It has been structured to link the highest decision-making body with ordinary Dominicans operating at the grassroots and all other levels. Members are therefore expected to translate and disseminate vital information to end-users and in turn pass up to Parliament information on the needs of the people and the impact of policies and programmes designed to grow the economy and strengthen the social safety net.

The launching of this Panel is occurring at a critical juncture in our country’s development. At this point we are engaged in a major restructuring of our economy and a review of all the institutions of Government that provide services to the public. Just as we are recovering from the devastating decline of the banana industry, we have to prepare ourselves for entry into CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME). And around the corner, by January 2008, we will be entering an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union.

I want to use a single statistic to highlight the challenges we face. Between the mid-1980s and 2003, the number of banana farmers declined from 11,000 to 1200. A Party like the DLP that puts people first wants to know what happened to the 10,300 Dominican citizens who lost their livelihood. What alternative employment did they find? How did they cope with the need for food, housing, clothing, education for their children, health services? What help do they now need to survive in the global marketplace that is emerging at an incredibly rapid rate?

At the same time the Government was forced to reduce expenditure. Civil Servants bore the brunt of the austerity measures through reductions in income and downsizing of the workforce. How did these dedicated workers make ends meet? How are they coping with the extra workload placed on them? What alternative employment did they find? What help are they looking for now?

My friends on the NSA Panel, it is in crafting answers and determining response strategies to these and other issues of national and people development that your dialogue with government and the European Commission will entail.

ALL HANDS ON DECK

If we as political leaders and partners in development are to remain relevant, we need accurate and timely answers to these types of questions. Your role will therefore be to gather essential information from your client groups and to dialogue on issues relating to policy, the political environment and EU programming requirements. The results of this dialogue will inform Government’s approach in determining the overall framework and priorities for development with the Commission.

Obviously we shall not expect the Panel to make decisions but as the title suggests, to advise on the best way forward for the Government of the Commonwealth of Dominica. We can only plan and move forward with confidence if we have the views and the commitment of our people. To move the good ship “Dominica” forward, we need all hands on deck.

I know that this is a formidable responsibility for small organizations. I also know that you have your concerns about how seriously your advice will be taken. But our track record speaks for itself. We have been frank and honest with the people. We have consulted them on all important issues. It is this trust that has enabled the people of Dominica to give us a second term of office exactly one year ago. We have never betrayed that trust and we have no intention of doing so.

I am also aware that responsibility without authority and resources is a recipe for failure. This formal launch by a Government with a clear mandate and the will to make the necessary changes, in the presence of powerful and distinguished representatives of the stakeholders in development, is a rite of passage designed to give you the necessary authority.

With respect to resources, I want to commit all the partners to making the necessary resources available.

CAPACITY BUILDING PROGRAMME

Let me start with capacity building. Small organizations like the NSA Panel cannot do the job expected of them without the appropriate structure and culture for gathering information, for analysing and interpreting it, for disseminating vital information, for making decisions and for reaching consensus.

Support will be provided to the panel in building its capacity to effectively discharge its mandate. In the course of time, and as the dialogue with the panel proceeds, programmes could emerge for providing capacity building support to a wider catchment of non- state actors.

In addition to this, ongoing training will be provided. My Government realizes that if we are to prepare this nation for successful competition in the global marketplace we must invest heavily in training. For example, we have to resocialize, re-educate, retrain….do whatever is necessary to get our people out of the mindset that expects someone to provide a job for them. As I said on several occasions, the role of Government is to create the conditions for enterprise. We need entrepreneurs who can spot opportunities and capitalize on them. And we need to strengthen their capacity to expand and prosper.

COMPREHENSIVE SUPPORT

This exercise means more to us than just setting up a forum. I am realistic enough to anticipate that it may be called “yet another talk shop”.

I therefore want to spend a little time explaining how we see this Panel helping us to move towards our vision for Dominica.

I am acutely aware of the sacrifices our people have had to make in the last 6 years. It has been a painful exercise for Government to administer the bitterest of medicines to aid recovery. As a result we want to ensure that recovery takes us onto a higher plane of socio-economic health.

We are therefore developing a comprehensive plan for the sustainable development of Dominica. A piecemeal approach to the monumental challenges we face is doomed to failure. Our plan, which is gradually evolving, is to develop a massive and comprehensive response to the situation that will enable us to make the great leap forward.

My friends, I am thinking of a Mini Marshall Plan to help us recover from the devastation of the 1990s. That plan can only be developed if we get contributions from all the stakeholders. I therefore challenge you who represent people of all walks of life in Dominica to help us develop and refine the master plan for the transformation of Dominica into a more developed state of the region. This naturally will have serious implications for funding.

REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT FUND

It is for this reason that I want to take this opportunity to call on our most loyal and generous partner in development, the European Union, to consider Dominica as a test case for development and to adopt a more holistic approach to our needs. Let us cut out as much of the bureaucracy as possible, let us eliminate the inertia, and let us speed up the process of getting help to those in greatest need. Let us show the world how a small country could be transformed.

What we fear most in Dominica is undercapitalization. As you all know, if you want a business to fail, provide it with less than it needs to be competitive. I repeat, we cannot afford to let Dominica, and businesses and other organizations in Dominica, to fail after all the sacrifices the people have made during the last 6 years.

And of course, Dominica should not be seen in isolation from the rest of the Caribbean. CSME is upon us. This regional integration initiative will have an impact on the local private sector and on government revenue. I therefore want to call on the European Commission to provide adequate assistance for us to meet the adjustment costs of CSME. We expect the EC to make a substantial contribution to the Regional Development Fund.

I am constantly striving to convince funders to see the bigger picture and to consider other highly possible and dangerous scenarios. Here in Dominica, within the current Caribbean context, we have a state that is committed to participatory democracy, that believes in reducing its intervention in economic affairs, and is willing to devolve real power to other stakeholders. Unless we can deliver on our promises, people will lose faith in the capacity of such governments to solve the problems of development in the post-colonial era. This could be the signal for more radical and demanding alternative solutions to surface. I am convinced that the cost of not doing enough now would far exceed what is required to launch Dominica on the best path to sustainable and peaceful development. Adequate investment is a prerequisite for peace, progress and prosperity.

My friends, ladies and gentlemen, I wish you well in your endeavours.

I thank you for your contributions, past, present and future.

I therefore declare this important NSA Panel operational.

I am sure that you will live up to the great expectations we have of you.

SPEECH DELIVERED BY HON. AMBROSE GEORGE ON THE OCCASION

OF THE LAUNCH OF

THE NON-STATE ACTORS ADVISORY PANEL

1ST JUNE 2006