GREAT BAY, Sint Maarten (GIS) – Honorable Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams, will be attending the Overseas Countries and Territories Association (OCTA) Ministerial Conference and the OCT-European Union (EU) Forum in the last week of February to be held on the South Pacific island of New Caledonia.
The Ministerial Conference is the highest political body of OCTA which meets on an annual basis to discuss and agree on policy matters concerning the Association.
The discussions at the meetings will be primarily centered on a new EU-OCT cooperation structure. The existing Overseas Association Decision (OAD) or the OCT Decision will expire in 2013.
The OAD is primarily a trade regime which gives the OCTs free market access to the EU. The intention of the decision is also to help create economic and social prosperity in the territories.
The last OCT Decision from 2001 was supplemented with an amending decision on March 19, 2007. The amending decision was developed in order for the OCT decision to follow the fiscal frames of the EU running until 2013, including the European Development Fund (EDF-10) from which the OCTs including Sint Maarten benefit (except Greenland). With the 2007 amendment the OCTs furthermore got full access to the EU’s horizontal programs.
The trip is being funded by the EU and is being coordinated by the Department of Interior and Kingdom Relations (BAK) that falls under the Ministry of General Affairs.
The BAK is the government entity responsible for European Affairs and has been appointed as the technical focal point for the European Development Programs. The Prime Minister is appointed as the Territorial Authorizing Officer (TAO).
New Caledonia is a French OCT which is located in the Southwest Pacific Ocean approximately 751 miles East of Australia and 930 miles Northwest of New Zealand.