MONTEGO BAY, St James — President of the Caribbean Shipping Association (CSA), Carlos Urriola, cautioned that despite talks of starting this year progressively, the Caribbean and Latin American region is yet to overcome the global recession.

“It is clear that the global recession is not over. We started the year 2010 talking in very positive terms. However, we in the Caribbean and Latin America are still feeling the pinch. It is not over just yet. The fat lady — bless her soul — is not yet singing,” Urriola warned.

He was speaking on Monday during the Caribbean Shipping Association’s (CSA) 40th Annual General Meeting, Conference and Exhibition, officially opened by Minister of Transport and Works, Mike Henry, at the Rose Hall Hilton Resort and Spa.

Urriola, a Panama national, urged the hundreds of delegates, including Ministers of Government, political leaders and top leadership of the regional shipping industry, in attendance to “continue to plan and make decisions that will keep us afloat”.

“Rather than be discouraged, we need to stay the course. We must continue to re-position ourselves for the period of growth which must follow these tough times. I am not Nostradamus, so I will not predict when that will be. Like you, I can only hope that it is sooner than later. There are positive signs but this is no time to break out the champagne… not just yet anyway. Let’s wait on the fat lady,” he argued.

The three-day conference, scheduled to end Wednesday (October 13), is being held under the theme, “Regional Integrated Maritime Strategy (RIMS): Dawn of a New Beginning”, and is expected to chart the way forward for shipping in the Caribbean and Latin America.

Urriola noted that as a forward-looking organisation, The CSA continues its quest for a Regional Integrated Maritime Strategy (RIMS).

“We have made some progress in what is admittedly a long-term initiative. The benefits of RIMS are not only desirable, they are achievable. Standardisation of maritime services and specialisation can lead to productivity gains; cost reductions; increased business; employment generation; and, logically, growth in gross domestic product. And because the shipping industry is at the centre of national economies of the region, this initiative will ultimately yield the development and growth that our peoples so richly deserve,” noted Urriola.

Meanwhile, noting that the Panama Canal Expansion programme will be completed in 2014, he expressed that “an expanded Panama Canal will affect the maritime industries of the region tremendously”.

In the meantime, Minister Henry expressed hope that the conference would trigger a spirit of co-operation within the region to enable it to reach out to North America, Canada and Europe, and even the Far East.