The ACP, or African, Caribbean and Pacific bloc of countries is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year. And now to re-invogorate this bloc of developing countries, there is a Revised Georgetown Agreement - giving new life to the original charter document and a new name to the group - now known as the Organisation of the African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS).
Belize's Ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium and the European Union and Belize's Representative to the OACPS signed the document today in Brussels, Belgium at the headquarters of the Organisation of the African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS).
We spoke to him via Zoom Conference about the significance of this for a group which has always supported Belize's sovereignty:
H. E. Dylan Vernon- Belize Ambassador to EU
"It's actually very important, Jules. Before it was called the OACPS it was the ACP, the African Caribbean Pacific group of states. This signing is basically an indication that the organization has been revitalized. It is now a full fledged international organization. But the importance for Belize is three fold. One, it provides political support for Belize and solidarity since its independence. The ACP was one of Belize's key allies in supporting its independence in the 1980s, leading up to independence at least. Secondly, the Belize Guatemala dispute over the years, the ACP has been one of our biggest international supporters. 
The ACP and its members have made strong declarations in support of Belize's sovereignty and territorial integrity, of course urging peaceful resolutions. The third one would be a sort of development cooperation and trade arrangements that the ACP has negotiated with the European Union. Perhaps, Jules, in short the ACP and now the OACPS is the organization through which Belize and the Caribbean by extension interacts with the European Union. And so, together these countries including the African and Pacific states negotiate with the EU for trade agreements, development financing and in the case of the intra-ACP, we do get a lot of political support from the ACP."
Belize is now the 38th of the 79 Member States of the OACPS to have signed the Revised Georgetown Agreement.
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