Can the Caribbean Curb the Flow of Illegal Guns?

The Caribbean is facing a deadly challenge: illegal firearms are flooding the region, fueling gang violence and pushing homicide rates to alarming levels. In response, three major players, CARICOM IMPACS, the European Union, and France, have joined forces to fight back. At a recent five-day training in Trinidad and Tobago, experts from across the region gathered to tackle the issue head-on. The aim is to build stronger intelligence networks, share best practices, and train frontline officers to disrupt the flow of illegal weapons. Lt. Col. Michael Jones didn’t sugarcoat it; he says illegal guns are ripping through our communities and leaving devastation in their wake. He emphasized that without regional cooperation and intelligence sharing, efforts to stop the violence will fall short. The numbers are sobering. Between 2009 and 2018, over twenty-two thousand illegal firearms and three hundred thousand rounds of ammunition were seized in the Caribbean. And from 2018 to 2022, nearly three-quarters of the guns traced in the region came from the United States. So, what’s being done? The Caribbean Firearms Roadmap now includes sixteen countries working together to tighten borders, improve investigations, and reduce gun violence. International partners like the EU, Canada, and the UK are also stepping in with funding and technical support. Will this new wave of cooperation be enough to stop the bloodshed—or is it just a drop in the bucket? As the workshop wraps up, participants are being urged to turn training into action. Because in this fight, coordination and trust might be the most powerful weapons of all.