King Willem Alexander and Queen Maxima
THE HAGUE--Minister Plenipotentiary of St Maarten Gracita Arrindell welcomed closer cooperation among the Netherlands, Curaçao, St Maarten and Aruba following the King’s Speech on Tuesday, September 15, saying the cooperation covers public administration, public finances, the rule of law, security, the economy and socioeconomic resilience.
Arrindell attended the Troonrede delivered by King Willem-Alexander at the opening of the parliamentary year of the Second Chamber of Parliament in The Hague.
“I am very pleased to hear of the close cooperation established within the Kingdom between the Netherlands, Curaçao, Sint Maarten and Aruba (CAS). The stated policy objectives include more effective cooperation between governments; stronger public administration; sustainable public finances; improved rule-of-law capacity; cooperation on security and crisis management; economic, energy and logistical cooperation; and greater socioeconomic resilience.”
For St Maarten, Arrindell said the cooperation includes continuation of the Country Package reforms through 2029, continued support for public-finance reform and the rule of law, ongoing debt and liquidity arrangements, strengthening judicial, investigative and border-control capacity, and continued socioeconomic programmes through the Temporary Work Organization (TWO).
Another message from the King’s address was that a summit of the four countries in the Kingdom will take place this autumn to discuss progress and opportunities in areas including the economy, subsistence security, climate and waste management.
According to the statement, the summit is intended to become an annual tradition. The Miljoenenota 2027 was also presented. It includes announcements concerning the continuation of reform cooperation programmes with Sint Maarten, Aruba and Curaçao that were established after the COVID-19 liquidity support arrangements.
The Netherlands and the three Caribbean countries have worked since 2021 through Country Packages covering reforms in public finances, economic resilience, public administration, the rule of law, education, social and economic development, and institutional capacity.
An independent evaluation concluded that the structural reforms require more time. Consequently, the Dutch government intends to extend the underlying Mutual Arrangement on Cooperation in Reforms by two years, through 2029.
Arrindell closed off Prinsjesdag by attending the annual Prinsjesdag Concert of the Residency Orchestra at the Amare theatre in The Hague.
