As regional leaders gather for the 50th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM, Grenada’s Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell is urging the Community to resist distraction by global turbulence and instead focus on deepening practical, functional cooperation within the region.

Speaking during an interview with Your Caribbean Guide at the margins of the meeting, Prime Minister Mitchell acknowledged that expectations are high — and rightly so.

“We are at a unique time in the world,” he said. “There are dramatic changes taking place. The diplomatic and geopolitical map is being reshaped.”

From shifting global alliances to economic realignments, Mitchell pointed to emerging powers in Africa and Asia, ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine, and evolving dynamics between the United States and Venezuela as evidence that the global order is in flux.

But while the world recalibrates, he warned that the Caribbean must not be “caught flat-footed.”

“We all have to make sure that we understand the forces that are shaping the whole, and that we know what role we can play in shaping it for a better place — for our people.”

Despite acknowledging geopolitical tensions, Mitchell was clear that his primary focus lies elsewhere.

“To me, the real conversation is not the geopolitics so much — because that’s playing out before our eyes. Things will settle over time. That’s the nature of a storm. You find the high ground and you wait for the storm to pass.”

Instead, he believes the meeting must zero in on tangible, internal reforms.

“What really matters for us is whether we are going to take concrete steps to address connectivity issues within the region, deepen trade, pool resources for education and healthcare, and improve how we approach things like fintech.”

He stressed that regional institutions must be challenged to move beyond incrementalism.

“CARICOM cannot just lumber along. We have to ask: what are our contributions towards revolutionizing and deepening Caribbean integration?”

Migration, Security and Shifting Alliances

Mitchell acknowledged that migration pressures — particularly linked to Venezuela — along with safety and security concerns are placing real strain on Caribbean nations.

“There’s a quiet crisis that nobody talks about,” he said, pointing to the enormous resources countries such as The Bahamas, Jamaica, the Cayman Islands and St. Kitts and Nevis have expended managing migration and human trafficking challenges.

At the same time, he recognized the region’s historic ties with Cuba, noting that the island is “going through an increasingly difficult period,” and that navigating shifting alliances requires nuance.

However, he cautioned against overreaction to geopolitical shifts.

“It’s easy to get caught up in sensational issues that grab headlines. But the real issue is whether we are pushing greater economic integration for our own benefit.”

A Health and Education Revolution

Arguably, some of his most pointed remarks came in relation to healthcare and human capacity.

“All of us have relied on Cuba to solve healthcare challenges,” he said. “But are we looking internally to see how we can scale up, put more resources into educating our population, and leverage institutions that already exist?”

He referenced Grenada’s St. George’s University — which has trained thousands of doctors for the North American market — and questioned how such institutions could better serve regional needs.

“We need to have conversations about how we leverage these institutions to better serve the Caribbean.”

Mitchell also highlighted alarming public health realities.

“We have incredibly high rates of diabetes, hypertension, strokes. We’ve probably become the amputation capital of the world. What are we doing collectively to address quality of life?”

For him, the answer lies in shared strategy rather than fragmented national approaches.

“Revolutionizing healthcare and education in the region will require greater functional cooperation — not all of us trying to do everything by ourselves.”

PM Mitchell also expressed optimism about the trajectory of deeper regional integration, particularly among members of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), which already share functional institutions such as a common judiciary and central bank.

“We are uniquely placed. We have functional cooperation in the judiciary, the central bank, investment migration regulation. That model shows that integration can work.”

He suggested that countries ready for expanded free movement and economic integration should move forward, despite the hesitation of others. 

“Those that are not ready will come along in due course when they see the benefits,” he said.

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Prime Minister Mitchell also offered a caution against overreliance on larger external powers as a security strategy.

“Continuing to go it alone or trying to partner with a bigger, more dominant partner in the hope of being safe is not a strategy that works in the long term,” he told Your Caribbean Guide.

While careful not to inflame divisions, the Grenadian Prime Minister offered a measured but candid response, to remarks made by Trinidad and Tobago’s leader, Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

He described Persad-Bissessar’s presentation as consistent with positions she has previously articulated.

“I think she’s been consistent,” he noted, explaining that many of her comments reflected domestic realities facing Trinidad and Tobago, particularly in relation to crime, gang activity, drugs, and broader national security concerns.

He acknowledged Trinidad and Tobago’s unique geopolitical and economic position within the region — including its proximity to Venezuela and its role as a major investor and economic driver within CARICOM.

“In my view,” he said candidly, “Trinidad needs CARICOM more than the Lesser Antilles needs Trinidad.”

He framed that assertion within economic context, noting that Trinidad and Tobago is one of the single largest investors in the region and that its businesses — including banks operating across member states — benefit significantly from the Common External Tariff and regional market protections.

“It’s their businesses that are protected by the Common External Tariff. Their banks are operating throughout the region,” he noted, emphasizing that integration works both ways.

Speaking “from a Lesser Antilles perspective,” Mitchell underscored that CARICOM is not a political union requiring uniformity of thought.

“We’re not a political union. We don’t have to have alignment on political views. We don’t have to have alignment on foreign policy all the time,” he said. “We are all independent nations. We are entitled to speak independently or collectively when it suits our particular interests.”

He cautioned against emotional reactions to differing viewpoints within the Community.

“Sometimes we have a romanticized, idealized way of how we think the world should be, rather than how it is,” he observed. “I don’t get emotional about those things. Those are not things to quarrel over.”

On Persad-Bissessar’s suggestion regarding involving opposition members in regional briefings and engagements, Mitchell was notably receptive.

“I actually think this is a progressive recommendation — from a continuity point of view — not putting persons who may become leaders at a disadvantage because they have no briefings or no involvement,” he said. “That’s a progressive suggestion that should be looked at holistically.”

While acknowledging that he does not agree with all of her views, he described aspects of her address as “refreshing and progressive,” though he added that much of the speech appeared directed toward a domestic audience.

“Some of the views I may not agree or share with, but some of them I think are actually refreshing,” he said. “But I think a lot of it was more speaking to domestic audience than anything else.”

For Prime Minister Mitchell, the pathway forward is clear: resilience through cooperation.

As leaders deliberate under the theme “Beyond Words: Action Today for a Thriving, Sustainable CARICOM,” he maintains,  the Caribbean must seize this moment not simply to react to global shifts, but to reshape its own future.

“We cannot just worry about the geopolitics,” he said. “We must decide whether we are ready to build the kind of Caribbean that truly works for our people.”