The Port of Spain Declaration has one paragraph (out of 97) on the global economic crisis.

Trade Minister Mariano Browne said yesterday there were several factors which made it difficult to address the international economic issues adequately in the Port of Declaration at the Fifth Summit of the Americas.

He said one of the important factors was that the G20 Summit, in which a number of participants in this summit hosted in Trinidad and Tobago, were involved-Canada, the US, Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Mexico-reached their decision only one week before the Port of Spain meeting.

’To structure an agreement that reflected that, into a document designed for this region, could not take place in time (for Summit),’ he said.

He urged people to be realistic in their expectations.

Noting that the ALBA countries (Bolivia, Cuba, Nicaragua Honduras, Dominica and Venezuela, which also met on the eve of the summit) had a different perspective, Browne said there was simply not enough time to negotiate a consensus from these divergent viewpoints in the short time available.

’People feel that if something happens you must get up and deal with it right away. But international relations does not just happen that way,’ Browne said.

ALBA countries had an ideological position on the global meltdown, as reflected in statements by Bolivia President Evo Morales and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega. Ortega had stated that it was unbridled capitalism and that the world was living under a dictatorship of global capitalism, which caused a crisis in food, energy and environment and threatened the very survival of the planet.

Summit sources also told the Express that the working groups negotiating the Declaration were operating at a time when the extended US election campaign was in progress, and therefore definitive positions would have been difficult to reach.

Paragraph 7, which deals with the crisis, states: ’We are committed to addressing the current economic and financial crisis in order to achieve our objectives of promoting human prosperity and securing our citizens’ future. We are determined to enhance our cooperation and work together to restore global growth and achieve needed reforms in the world’s financial systems.’

In explaining what were some of the sticking points which led countries not to sign the Declaration on Sunday, Mexico’s President Felipe Calderon said some countries felt that the question of the economic meltdown was not sufficiently discussed.

Outside of this issue, the Declaration states that countries recognise that deep inequalities continue to exist in the region and that governments should continue to develop and implement social protection and inclusion policies and programmes that give priority to those living in conditions of poverty and vulnerability, promoting access to education, health, nutrition, energy, basic social services and to opportunities for dignified and decent work.

The Declaration also talks about strengthening democratic governance.

’We will strengthen our fight against all forms of corruption, fraudulent practices and unethical behaviour by increasing transparency, integrity, accountability and efficiency in the public and private sectors,’ it said.