OAS official wants CARICOM to sign EPA

By JASMIN BONIMY, Guardian Staff Reporter, jasmin@nasguard.com A high-ranking regional official is calling for CARICOM nations like The Bahamas to sign on to trading agreements, such as the controversial Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union. Speaking to The Guardian during an official visit to The Bahamas, Assistant Secretary General to the Organization of the American States (OAS) Ambassador Albert R. Ramdin, told reporters that he believed trade agreements are important for a nation's growth and development. "Every region is trying to find the best treaty arrangements with the partners," said Ambassador Ramdin. "We have a multiplicity of trading arrangements in the Western Hemisphere. The EPA with the European Union and the Caribbean, is a form of continuation of the customary agreement. I think it... [read full story]