Gourt Home::Gourt :: Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States
The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) is an inter-governmental organisation dedicated to economic harmonisation and integration, protection of human and legal rights, and the encouragement of good governance between countries and dependencies in the Eastern Caribbean. It also performs the role of spreading responsibility and liability in the event of natural disaster, such as a hurricane.
The main organ of the OECS, the Secretariat, is based in the capital city of Saint Lucia, Castries.
History
The OECS was created on 18 June, 1981, with the Treaty of Basseterre, which was named after the city of the same name, the capital city of St. Kitts and Nevis. The OECS is the successor of the Leewards Islands' political organisation known as the West Indies Associated States (WIAS).
One prominent aspect of the modern day OECS economic bloc has been the accelerated pace of trans-national integration among its member states.
All of the members-states of the OECS are either: Full or Associate members of the Caribbean Community and are among the next batch of countries scheduled to join the Caribbean (CARICOM) Single Market and Economy (CSME).
OECS Membership
The OECS currently has nine members, spread across the Eastern Caribbean. Together, they form a near-continuous archipelago across the Leeward Islands and Windward Islands.
The two most geographically isolated members, Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands, have only associate membership of the organisation. As a result, diplomatic missions of the OECS do not represent these two states. For the purposes of further discussing the membership, they are treated as equals of the full members.
Six of the members were formerly colonies of the United Kingdom. The other three, Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, and Montserrat remain overseas territories of the UK. Eight of the nine members consider Queen Elizabeth II to be sovereign (Dominica is a republic). There is no requirement for the members to have been British colonies, however the close historical, cultural and economic relationship fostered by them having all been British colonies is as much a factor in the membership of the OECS as their geographical proximity. As well, the Queen's likeness appears on the East Caribbean dollar's coins and banknotes.
Organs of the OECS
Secretariat
The functions of the Organisation are set out in the Treaty of Basseterre and are coordinated by the Secretariat under the direction and management of the Director General.The OECS functions in a rapidly changing international economic environment, characterised by globalisation and trade liberalisation which are posing serious challenges to the economic and social stability of their small island members. It is the purpose of the Organisation to assist its Members to respond to these multi-faceted challenges by identifying scope for joint or coordinated action towards the economic and social advancement of their countries. The restructuring of the Secretariat was informed by considerations of cost effectiveness in the context of the need to respond to the increasing challenges placed on it, taking into account the limited fiscal capacities of its members. The Secretariat consists of four main Divisions responsible for: External Relations, Functional Cooperation, Corporate Services and Economic Affairs. These four Divisions oversee the work of a number of specialised institutions, work units or projects located in six countries - Antigua/Barbuda, Commonwealth of Dominica, St Lucia, Belgium, Canada, and the United States of America.
In carrying out its mission, the OECS works along with a number of sub-regional and regional agencies and institutions. These include the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB); the Caribbean Community (Caricom) Secretariat; the Caricom Regional Negotiating Machinery (RNM) and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB).
Director General
The authority within the OECS Secretariat is lead by the Director General. The current Director General of the OECS is Dr. Len Ishmael.Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court
The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC), which was created during the era of WISA today handles the judicial matters in the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States. When a trial surpasses the stage of High Court in an OECS member state, it can then be passed on to the ECSC at the level of Supreme court. Cases appealed from the stage of ECSC Supreme Court will then be referred to the jurisdiction of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). Prior to the establishment of the CCJ in 2003, court cases appealed at the level of the ECSC's Supreme court would continue to the Privy Council, in the United Kingdom. *Central Bank
The majority of the OECS members-states are participants of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) monetary authority. The regional central bank oversees financial and banking integrity for the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States economic bloc of states. Part of the bank's oversight lends to maintaining the financial integrity of the Eastern Caribbean dollar (Caribbean dollar|EC$" target="_blank" >*). Of all OECS member-states, only the British Virgin Islands, do not use the Eastern Caribbean dollar as their de facto native currency.
Foreign Missions
Brussels, Belgium
- Ambassador to Belgium and the European Union - George Bullen
Ottawa, Canada
- High Commissioner to Canada - Lorraine B. Williams
Geneva, Switzerland
- Chargé d'affaires to the World Trade Organization (WTO) - Elliott Paige
See also
- Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange
- Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court
- Caribbean Community
- West Indies Associated States
External links
International organizations | OECS
Organisation Ostkaribischer Staaten | Organización de Estados del Caribe Oriental | Organisation des États de la Caraïbe orientale
"Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States"