ROSE HALL, St James — Guyana President Irfaan Ali says while progress has been made in implementing freedom of movement within the Caribbean Community (Caricom), some countries are still not quite ready to get onboard.

“Some countries, of course, would need some more time to transition,” Ali told reporters Monday on the sidelines of the ongoing 49th Caricom Heads of Government Conference now taking place in Montego Bay.

Participation in the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME) allows for free movement of skilled labour, goods and services among participating member states. However, focused on their local markets, some countries have been cautious in implementation.

Meanwhile, Bermuda, which is an associate member of Caricom, has indicated that free movement will not be automatic if it attains full membership.

After February’s 48th regular meeting of the conference of heads of government of Caricom in Barbados, then Chair Mia Mottley, the Barbados prime minister, said they were a step closer to seeing freedom of movement of Caricom nationals by June 1.

“We are finding the right language and the right frameworks to support that transition but I think where we are at now is a position where we must move forward whilst the transition takes place,” President Ali noted Monday.

Despite his concern that some countries are less ready to embrace the concept than others, he remains optimistic.

“Free movement is a critical part of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy and I’ve seen great progress in the last couple of months,” he declared.

“Prime Minister Mottley has been working aggressively over time on this. I think there is the appetite and the commitment,” Ali added.

Ali also spoke on the topic of crime fighting within the region which, he said, needs an integrated approach to be tackled effectively.

“On crime and security, there are many things that have to work together. One is the infrastructure; two is the legislative agenda, ensuring we have the right legal framework. Three is the judicial system, ensuring that the judicial system [is] working in an efficient way and reliable way,” he declared.

Crime and violence in the Caribbean is one key area of focus for the ongoing conference as leaders seek to craft strategies to effectively tackle the unwanted scourge. Some countries are grappling with challenges related to gun crimes, drugs, kidnappings and a raft of other deviant behaviour.

Ali spoke of the need for a renewed look at the region’s borders.

“Of course, importantly, is the investment in our borders and the technology that will support internal security from the issues that we have at the border — that is, illegal firearms and so on coming in,” he said.

“These are some of the challenges that we are looking at in an integrated way,” the Guyanese president declared.