Biography

Dianna DaSilva-Glasgow holds a B.Sc. (Honours) in Economics from the University of Guyana and a M.Sc. (Distinction) in International Trade Policy from the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus. She is a Researcher at the Institute of Development Studies, University of Guyana. Her research interests include; Global Regulations, International Trade and Agricultural Development; and Regional Integration and Development. She also has Consultancy experience as a Research Assistant on a number of projects including work with the Caribbean Community Secretariat and the Development Policy and Management Consultants (DPMC) on projects sponsored by agencies such as the USAID. Mrs. DaSilva-Glasgow has both technical and professional writing experience. Her technical writing experience includes; co-authoring the National Institutional Assessment of the Agricultural Sector for Climate Change Adaptation under a Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre-funded project. She has also participated and presented papers at a number of Conferences including: the Conference on Food Security and Agricultural Development in the Americas, UWI at Mona (2009); and the 7th Quest for Global Competitiveness Conference, University of Puerto Rico (2010).

Article Title

A Comparative Assessment of the Economic Motivations Behind the CARICOM and EU Integration Arrangements

Abstract

This paper argues that owing to a governance deficit regional integration in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has not lived up its ambitions and lags behind integration efforts in other parts of the world, notably the European Union (EU). The main thesis of the paper is that motivations are useful indicators of willingness and drive to succeed. To this end, through the use of met-analysis, the paper seeks to examine those underlying economic factors that motivated the creation of CARICOM. This is juxtaposed with a comparative assessment of the motivations behind EU integration. The motivations are further used to gauge the success of EU integration and to evaluate the current state of CARICOM integration. The paper further examines the persistence and relevance of those factors for CARICOM integration in the current context of global integration and the paradoxical global trend towards regionalism. This leads to the conclusion that integration has not adequately responded to developments in the global economy despite the fact that the modus operandi of integration in CARICOM is driven by external developments. Moreover, the paper concludes that integration remains a necessary economic option for the survival and sustainability of the individual countries of CARICOM in the global economy.