Timeframes set for moves towards regional ferry service

A high-level meeting was held in Trinidad on Thursday on the proposed regional ferry and all sides agreed on a two-month period for completion of pre-clearance procedures for immigration, customs and plant quarantine and to make the service a reality as soon as possible.

A release from the Ministry of Public Works yesterday said that the talks were held among officials from Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados on the recent proposal for a Common Transportation Ferry System in Caricom.

At the request of Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali, the meeting was convened at the Ministry of Works and Transport, Trinidad, and Tobago.

A delegation from Guyana was led by Minister in the Ministry of Public Works, Deodat Indar, and included Brian Sears, Chief Plant Protection Officer, Ministry of Agriculture; Stephen Telford, Head of Immigration and Rohan Beekhoo, Comptroller Customs Excise and Trade, Guyana Revenue Authority.

The meeting which was chaired by Indar included Senator Rohan Sinanan, Minister of Works and Transport (Trinidad and Tobago); Ian Gooding-Edghill, Minister of Tourism and International Transport (Barbados); Dr. Pauline Yearwood Deputy Programme Manager Directorate of Trade and Economic Integration (Caricom Secretariat). Other senior regional officials in the areas of Immigration, Customs, Plant Quarantine, Port Health, and Agriculture were also in attendance.

One of the many challenges identified by Heads of Government within Caricom in attaining the objective to slash the regional food bill by 25% by the year 2025, remains the difficulty faced in transporting agricultural goods and people intra-regionally. It is with this in mind