Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is an organization for economic integration and political cooperation of Caribbean states. CARICOM was established by the Treaty of Chaguaramas in 1973 to replace the former Caribbean Free Trade Association.
The 15 member states of CARICOM are Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago. Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, and the Turks and Caicos Islands are associate members.
CARICOM’s objectives include improved living and working standards for Caribbean people, economic development and convergence (coming together), expanded trade with nonmember countries, and the coordination of members’ foreign policies. Some of the organization’s projects are the promotion of renewable energy sources, support for resources in the fight against AIDS, and the development of communication and information technologies in the Caribbean.
