Briefings
What is being published, decided and convened
Significant papers, reports from international and regional organisations, and the conferences that shape small island states and the wider Global South. Read from where we stand.
Trade
Market Access Is Being Reset, One Measure at a Time
United States tariff measures affecting the Caribbean have changed repeatedly over the past year, and CARICOM is reviewing its own external tariffs at the same time. Exporters and investors are working in a moving rulebook, not a settled one.
29 Oct 2026 · CARICOM
Regional governance
Integration Is a Delivery Problem
CARICOM's Secretary-General now describes integration as a strategic development platform, while a former prime minister warns that slow institutional reform is holding the bloc back. For anyone working through regional institutions, the gap between agreement and implementation is the risk to price in.
29 Oct 2026 · CARICOM
Dialogue
Getting to the Table Is Only the First Step
Pacific states are gaining technical backing to take part in WTO reform, and leaders and investors meet in Vanuatu next week on food and climate finance. The convening question is who is in the room, how well prepared they are, and what happens after.
29 Oct 2026 · Pacific
Climate finance
Grants, Not Debt: The Test Awaiting Island States at COP31
COP31 opens on 9 November in Antalya. For island states, the question is less how much is pledged than whether it arrives as grants, arrives quickly and arrives in a form their institutions can absorb.
29 Oct 2026 · Pacific · SIDS