The activism and inclusion of civil society organisations in CARICOM on trade negotiating matters : a look at three cases

摘要

This thesis seeks to understand why civil society organisations (CSOs) in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) began to mobilise in the 1990s and why government overtures to consulting CSOs on trade matters emerged from around the same time. In addition, this thesis examines the ways in which different types of CSOs have mobilised on trade issues and the ways in which governments have included CSOs in trade consultations. To answer the “why” questions, this thesis posits that both material and ideational factors were important for motivating CSOs to conceive of themselves as needing to mobilise on trade matters in the context of the 1990s. The material and ideational factors of note here are: shifts in the direction of neo-liberal policy orientation, towards a focus on globalisation and towards emphasising good governance. These have impacted on actor interests and perceptions. Despite ideational and material factors impacting on CSO interest perceptions and on government approaches to trade matters, these factors cannot account for variations in the types of CSOs that mobilise and that governments consult on trade matters. This is where institutional factors become important. Institutions can help one to understand how different CSOs have mobilized and how CSOs have been included on trade matters at the region level and across three case studies (Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, and St. Lucia). In essence the thesis shows that whilst ideational and material factors help one to understand why CSOs have mobilised and have been included, institutional factors help one to understand how they have been included.