David Comissiong | CELAC must assert a strong, unified voice in global governance

Since its establishment in 2010, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) has signalled the enduring value of a unified Latin American and Caribbean voice.

It remains the only forum in which all developing countries of our hemisphere are fully represented, underscoring its unique legitimacy and convening power. It reflects the historic vision of the great nineteenth century liberator Simon Bolivar, who recognized that the strength of our region lies in its unity, and the twenty-first century inspiration of the late great Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez.

Through CELAC, we have strengthened cooperation among ourselves in key areas such as food security and health, including coordination, most notably, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

RELATIONS WITH AFRICA

Just as importantly, CELAC has also facilitated very significant engagements with external partners through mechanisms such as the CELAC-European Union and CELAC-China cooperation frameworks, and we have now taken decisive steps to establish a long overdue framework with the African Union (AU).

The recent engagements between CELAC representatives and the African Union Commission (AUC) have reaffirmed a shared commitment to deepening South-South cooperation and advancing common positions within global governance spaces.

These initiatives have emphasized the importance of African diaspora linkages, reparatory justice, and collaboration in areas such as education, science and innovation, reflecting the recognition that Latin America, the Caribbean, and Africa are natural partners united by shared histories and development priorities.

Barbados greatly welcomes this new development!

BRIDGETOWN INITIATIVE

Also of great importance to Barbados is the role CELAC has been playing in advancing advocacy for increased climate financing for developing countries in our region.

And Barbados takes this opportunity to reiterate the importance of mobilizing and supporting the Bridgetown Initiative – a project which calls for strengthening flexible financial instruments more aligned with our national realities, and enabling timely access to affordable, long-term funding for adaptation, mitigation and loss and damage recovery, including the development of pre-arranged financial mechanisms that allow for rapid response by our most vulnerable countries following extreme catastrophic events.

Experience has shown us that CELAC’s effectiveness is closely linked to sustained political engagement among its member states and continuity in its work. It goes without saying therefore that we must strengthen our follow-up mechanisms to ensure implementation of agreed outcomes.

ZONE OF PEACE AND CUBA

We must also be determined to ensure that CELAC functions in a concrete way as an instrument of development in our region. But as we all know, there can be no development without peace!

And so, we must all make a profound commitment to uphold and defend CELAC’s historic 2014 “Declaration of Havana” which proclaimed our region as a Zone of Peace. That means our denunciation and rejection of the extra-judicial killings of our citizens by an intruding great power!

We must also hold fast to our collective denunciation of the United States’ illicit unilateral blockade of our CELAC member state of Cuba as a gross violation of our region’s internationally recognized designation as a Zone of Peace.

Indeed, let us all ensure that we uphold our duty as members of this great fraternal regional organization to give our member state of Cuba all of the concrete solidarity and support that it needs as it faces the current threat to its sovereignty and to the wellbeing of its people.

THE BECKONING FUTURE

As we look ahead, CELAC must continue to engage extra-regional partners with strategic clarity, leveraging existing frameworks such as CELAC-European Union and CELAC-China cooperation to mobilize financing, advance technology transfer, and support sustainable development.

CELAC must also now assert itself more than ever as a unified voice in global governance, ensuring that the priorities of Latin America and the Caribbean are effectively represented!

The challenges before us do not call for isolated responses, but for coordinated action grounded in shared responsibility. Let us therefore reaffirm our commitment to unity – not as an aspiration, but as a practical imperative – so that, through the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), we may shape a more resilient, just, and sustainable future for all our peoples.

- Address to the Meeting Of Foreign Ministers Of The Community Of Latin American And Caribbean States (CELAC) in Bogota, Colombia on March 20, 2026. David Comissiong is a Citizen of the Caribbean Community. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com