The status of bilateral initiatives between Barbados and the Republic of Cuba will come under review when Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley and President Miguel Díaz-Canel meet next Monday, December 5.
The Cuban leader will be in Barbados for an official State Visit and to participate in the Eighth CARICOM-Cuba Summit on Tuesday, December 6.
Both events will commemorate 50 years of diplomatic relations between Barbados and Cuba, as well as CARICOM-Cuba relations which were established on December 8, 1972, by four CARICOM Member States, namely Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago.
Barbados and Cuba have maintained healthy and productive relations. Cuba has operated its Embassy in Bridgetown since 1994, while Barbados inaugurated its Embassy in Havana in September 2010.
While the relationship between Barbados and Cuba remains active and vibrant, particularly in the areas of health and wellness, education, and sports, there is substantial scope for a further deepening of the bilateral relationship.
With the recent announcement by the Cuban government that foreign majority participation would now be allowed in the areas of wholesale and retail, two key areas of priority for cooperation are biotechnology and trade and investment.
Prime Minister Mottley and President Díaz-Canel are also expected to jointly host the laying of wreaths ceremony at the Cubana Monument at Paynes Bay, St. James, in remembrance of the 73 passengers and crew of the Cubana Airlines flight that perished on October 6, 1976. This event is scheduled to take place on December 6, following the conclusion of the Eighth CARICOM-Cuba Summit.
