Kamina Johnson Smith | Atlantic Ocean no barrier to Africa-Caribbean ties

Jamaica proudly joins our brothers and sisters across Africa and the Caribbean in commemorating Africa‑CARICOM Day 2026, celebrating the ties of kinship and common purpose that unite our regions.

The decision to commemorate this day was taken at the Inaugural Africa‑CARICOM Summit in 2021, in furtherance of the much earlier formal recognition by the African Union of its Diaspora as the sixth region of Africa.

This observance reflects our shared determination to give modern expression to our ancestral bonds through deeper political and economic cooperation and stronger people to people ties.

As a proud member of Africa’s sixth region, Jamaica remains firmly committed to strengthening this important partnership between the Caribbean and Africa.

Four years later, that commitment gained renewed momentum at the Second Africa‑CARICOM Summit held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 7th September 2025. As the first in-person meeting of African and Caribbean leaders, the summit provided a platform to advance the shared cause of reparatory justice while promoting greater cooperation in trade and investment, health, education, culture, climate resilience and people to people exchanges.

Since then, the momentum has fuelled joint action on issues of shared concern. In March 2026, CARICOM joined African partners in supporting the successful adoption of the United Nations resolution declaring the trafficking of enslaved Africans and racialised chattel slavery as the gravest crime against humanity.

Its adoption stands as a fitting affirmation of the Caribbean Community’s longstanding advocacy for decisive action to repair the harmful legacies of this painful history.

In recent months, we have also witnessed the strength of Africa-Caribbean solidarity through the critical support given by our African brothers and sisters in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa, and the role that African nations continue to play in supporting efforts to bring peace and stability to Haiti.

Jamaica continues to play its part in giving greater substance to this relationship. This year, the opening of the High Commission of Kenya in Kingston marked another important step in strengthening our engagement with the African continent.

We also reflect with pride on the recent visits by His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, President of Ghana, by the Honourable Alvin Botes, Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa, on the occasion of celebration of Jamaica’s 64th anniversary of independence in August.

In building on that engagement, Prime Minister, Dr the Most Honourable Andrew Holness has accepted the invitation of President Mahama to serve on Ghana’s newly established Global Advisory Council on Reparations, alongside other Caribbean leaders, providing yet another avenue for continued engagement on this important issue.

Taken together, these developments reflect a relationship that is growing in strength and purpose, grounded in a shared history that gives this partnership its depth. It is now for us to ensure that the next entries in the annals of history are defined by the justice we pursue, the trade and investment ties we forge, the institutions we build and the solidarity we extend to one another in times of need.

Even as we look ahead, we celebrate the African traditions, music, cuisine and languages that have helped shape Caribbean civilisation and identity, and we honour the sacrifices of our forebears by working together to build a future that is not only more prosperous and resilient, but more just.

It is in that spirit that on this Africa‑CARICOM Day, Jamaica reaffirms its commitment to advancing this partnership with a clear sense of what we must achieve together, knowing that the Atlantic Ocean which separates us is no match for the enduring bonds between Africa and the Caribbean.

Happy Africa‑CARICOM Day 2026!

- Senator Kamina Johnson Smith is Jamaica’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com. ONLINE ONLY COMMENTARY.