Government of Barbados - Regional and International Links

Barbados recognises that it must co-operate with other countries in order to overcome those limitations imposed by its small size and scarce resources. To this end, Barbados is a member of several regional and international organisations.

There is a strong commitment to regional integration and some of the regional bodies whose headquarters are based on the island are: Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC), Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), Caribbean Conference of Churches (CCC), and the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO).

Barbados is also a founding member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). This body is a trade and economic grouping of thirteen English-speaking countries in the Caribbean.

In the international arena, Barbados is a member of the United Nations and its specialised agencies, the Organisation of American States (OAS) and other agencies, of the Inter-American system, the Commonwealth, the group of African, Caribbean and Pacific states (ACP) as well as the Non-Aligned Movement.

BARBADOS FOREIGN AFFAIRS

The Barbados Ministry of Foreign Affairs along with its overseas missions, is the key agency in the development and maintenance of its external relations.

Its main objectives are:

Promotion of beneficial trading relationships with third states and economic groupings, and protection of Barbados' interests within the framework of international, commercial and economic policy making;

Procurement of concessionary financing for Barbados' development effort;

Attraction of investment capital for industrial development in prescribed sectors of the economy and the promotion of Barbados as an offshore Financial Sector;

Promotion and expansion of tourism and connected hospitality services;

Preservation and protection of national sovereignty and security;

Strengthening the regional integration movement and promoting the concept of Caribbean unity;

Strengthening ties with traditional allies and fastening new ties with friendly countries based on the principles of peaceful co-existence and of the sovereign equality of states;

Collaborating with like-minded countries to advance the concepts of morality, justice and respect for human rights in international affairs;

Pursuing in its international behaviour, the goal of peaceful relations among states, and seeking to create, through constructive, collective action, a new social, political and economic order;

Protection and promotion of the interests and welfare of Barbadian nationals abroad.

These objectives represent the Barbados Government's commitment to economic and social betterment of its people without compromising those fundamental principles and rights necessary for its survival as a free sovereign and democratic nation.

MISSIONS OVERSEAS

Barbados is represented by the following Missions Overseas:

(1) High Commission to the United Kingdom, London;

(2) Embassy to the U.S.A. and a Permanent Mission to the Organisation of American States, Washington;

(3) Permanent Mission to the United Nations, New York;

(4) Consul General in New York;

(5) High Commission to Canada, Ottawa;

(6) Consul General, Toronto;

(7) Embassy of Brussels and the EU;

(8) Embassy at Caracas;

(9) Consul General in Miami;

(10) Embassy at Geneva, Switzerland.

Barbados also has a number of Honorary Consulates in various other countries.

The Barbados Ministry of Foreign Affairs Homepage