The Conference of Churches of Grenada (CCG) has accepted the request by the Grenada Trade Union Congress and the Government to act as facilitator/mediator in a dialogue towards the development of a national consensus in a number of important areas affecting all Grenadians.

The private sector has expressed its support for such an initiative. The purpose of this dialogue is to have Grenadians, led by key stakeholders in Government, the labour movement, the private sector, churches and community based groups, among others, concentrate their efforts on building our country.

This dialogue will recognise that the respective groups have legitimate concerns and disagreements among them. It is our hope however that we will be able to focus on the many things we have in common, while taking into consideration those issues on which we may disagree. In taking up this challenge, the CCG is convinced that the vast majority of Grenadian people love their country and would want to see it grow and prosper.

We recognise that to move to consensus will not be particularly easy. We believe however that the goodwill and kindness that is part of the natural inclination of Grenadians will come to the fore in this process.

The process of dialogue will be a continuing one that hopefully will form one of the bases for making important decisions on national development. However we look forward to some concrete agreements and results within the next six months. The CCG has specifically been asked to engage stakeholders in a discussion on the development of a social contract and on the national reconstruction levy.

Some of the other issues which the process of dialogue could initially tackle include national reconstruction, housing, youth, agriculture and productivity. We will however engage in a process of consultation to determine what are the most important issues that need to be addressed and in what order.

The CCG comes to this exercise with no preconceived notions or biases. We have one objective in mind, which is to contribute to the quality of life of all Grenadians. In facilitating this process, the Conference of Churches of Grenada will be assisted by a team from Ideas to Business Limited, a Caribbean consultancy firm based in Trinidad and Tobago. (Submitted by the CONFERENCE OF CHURCHES OF GRENADA)