Reclaiming Small State Agency

In the context of international relations, agency refers to the ability of actors, such as states, international organisations, and non-state actors, to exert influence and make independent decisions within the global arena. It encompasses the capacity of these actors to shape and pursue their own interests, goals, and policies, as well as to impact the behaviour and outcomes of other actors in the international system.

Agency is a fundamental concept in understanding how actors interact with each other and participate in international relations. It recognizes that states and other entities possess varying degrees of power, capabilities, and resources, which enable them to act autonomously and exercise their own will in pursuit of their interests.

In previous columns, concerns have been raised about the ability of Caribbean nations to exercise agency, given the many challenges in the international arena as well as what sometimes appears to be the de-prioritisation of the region by some of the major global actors. However, recent developments have suggested that all is not lost.

In January 2020, St. Vincent and the Grenadines took up its seat as a non-permanent member of the United Nations (UN) Security Council (UNSC), becoming the smallest nation to do so. In October 2021, Barbados hosted the Fifteenth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Out of this came the Bridgetown Covenant which outlines a roadmap for transforming economies through economic diversification; addressing unsustainable debt burdens in developing countries; making economies more sustainable and resilient; improving how development is financed; and reimagining how multilateralism will function in the future.

Last November, at the UN climate change conference in Egypt, the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, unveiled the Bridgetown Initiative, which is essentially an action plan to reform the global financial system so the world can better respond to current and future crises such as climate change. Through the Bridgetown Initiative, there is now growing pressure on the international financial community, including the World Bank, to find US$100 billion in new financing to drive climate and development finance.

In January this year, St. Vincent and the Grenadines assumed the Pro Tempore Presidency of the Community of Latin American and the Caribbean States (CELAC) for the period 2023. In addition to its tenure on the UNSC, this has provided another useful platform for the country to project influence within the global arena.

About a week ago, Trinidad and Tobago’s ambassador to the UN in New York, Dennis Francis, was elected as the next president of the UN General Assembly (UNGA). Mr Francis will take over the presidency at the start of the 78th session of the UNGA in September this year.

Even more recently, on 6th June 2023, the UN General Assembly elected Guyana as one of several new members to hold a non-permanent seat on the UNSC for the period 2024-2025.

These developments reawaken fond memories of a time when Caribbean countries were largely seen as perennially punching above their weight in global affairs. Many Caribbean statesmen and stateswomen of yesteryear have been immortalised in the lexicon of global affairs. Names such as Eugenia Charles of Dominica, Dame Billie Miller of Barbados, Michael Manley of Jamaica and many others, stood as giants on the world stage.

Large countries with big economies and sizeable militaries have a natural agency about them. They can assert themselves in ways that small states can scarcely do. Small states, by comparison, must rely more heavily on skilful and strategic diplomacy to navigate the international space.

By exercising agency in global affairs in the way that St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago are demonstrating, can win the Caribbean region a tremendous amount of goodwill. Such goodwill can be used meaningfully to bring attention and resources to addressing many of the region’s pressing concerns.

Joel K Richards is a Vincentian national living and working in Europe in the field of international trade and development.

Email: joelkmrichards@gmail.com