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12 13 the region. Moreover, it is estimated that con- sumer food products account for over 50 per cent of the Caribbean’s annual imports from the United States, comprising mainly poultry, red meats, dairy products, and processed fruits and vegetables. This volume of imports suggests that there is scope for substituting these products with increased domestic production. This can be facilitated by achieving greater economies of scale through the expansion of agriculture in the larger countries such as Guyana and Suri- name. The brief notes that some businesses in Trinidad and Tobago are investing in food pro- duction in Guyana. The study also pointed out that establishing intra-regional transportation linkages that fa- cilitate intra-regional trade and the movement of people has been a major challenge in the Ca- ribbean.This occurs because transportation costs among island communities are much higher than costs between the region and metropolitan econ- omies.The brief suggests the need for a revamped approach to regional air and sea transport,with better incentives for private sector investment and public private partnerships (PPPs) to absorb some of the costs. The brief suggested that the telecommuni- cations sector in the region needs to be fully liberalized to reduce costs and improve its qual- ity.This improvement could facilitate trade and investment in addition to raising the efficiency in other sectors.The paper concluded that the region needs to design its own blend of market-based and government-supported approaches to tackle the binding constraints alluded to,which impede economic restructuring and diversification. OPENING LINES The ability of the sugar industry in the region to survive after the removal of produc- tion quotas in the European Union (EU) on 30 September, 2017,will depend on improved competitiveness and pragmatic diversification options, according to a Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat official. The end of EU’s quota management for sugar is expected to lead to a fall in prices towards the international sugar price and a decrease in sugar imports from the African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states, with par- ticular impact on Caribbean producers. In an address on March 23rd to the open- ing of a regional policy workshop in Kings- ton, Jamaica, that addressed the Caribbean Sugar Industry Post-2017, CARICOM Secretariat ProgramManager for Agriculture and Indus- try,Nisa Surujbally, said that securing more remunerative markets, value addition and an enabling policy regime within the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) were also very important to the industry’s survival. “We have witnessed major structural changes in the operations of our sugar in- dustries, including the exit from sugar pro- duction of two member states, Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis. Nevertheless, STAKEHOLDERS DISCUSS AWAY FORWARD FOR REGIONAL SUGAR INDUSTRY