The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) will celebrate its 45th anniversary on Thursday urging people across the sub-region to be part of the ‘OECS 45 for 45’ which runs until June 30 this year.
The OECS groups the islands of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Kitts and Nevis, Montserrat and Anguilla. ‘The OECS 45 for 45 Changemaker Initiative is a regional campaign celebrating the OECS’s four and a half decades of regional integration, unity and shared progress through acts of service, volunteerism and community impact,’ the St. Lucia-based OECS Commission said in a statement.
It said it recognises that ‘No One Is Coming to Save Us – Which Is Why We Must Build Ourselves’ and highlights the transformative impact of collective agency and adaptive development.
The anniversary is being observed under the theme, ‘One Vision, One Voice: Navigating Challenges, Shaping Our Future’.
OECS Director General, Dr. Didacs Jules said ‘saving ourselves therefore requires a shift in how we think and how we act, not more projects but stronger systems, not longer plans but adaptive strategy, not reactive compliance but interest anchored engagement.
‘Saving ourselves is not beyond our capacity. It requires clarity of purpose, courage to integrate more deeply, and discipline to build systems that endure. This is not about rejecting the world, it is about engaging it on terms that protect our agency, our dignity, and our future choices,’ said Jules.
The OECS Commission said that the OECS 45 for 45 Changemaker Initiative translates the 45th anniversary theme ‘into tangible action, moving the celebration beyond reflection to meaningful participation, and emphasises that every person has the power to make an impact.
‘Participation is open to everyone, whether participating as an individual, a family, a school, a community group, an organisation, or a business. Citizens across the region and in the diaspora are invited to take action in their own way. Every action, big or small, contributes to building stronger, more connected communities.
According to the OECS Commission, participants may commit to completing time-consuming tasks for 45 minutes or to performing measurable actions such as donating 45 items or parcels or planting 45 trees.
‘Participants in the OECS 45 for 45 Changemaker Initiative will be recognised as OECS 45 for 45 Changemakers. They will receive digital certificates, be featured in the OECS 45 FOR 45 Changemaker Initiative publicity campaigns and featured in the Digital Wall of Service.’