A look back at the 2026 Caribbean-French Guiana Regional Cooperation Conference

For five days, Fort-de-France became the epicentre of a diplomatic campaign against drug trafficking. In recent years, illicit trafficking has been on the rise across the Caribbean and French Guiana region, and the seizure figures speak for themselves. The French authorities intercepted 35.7 tonnes of narcotics in 2025, compared with 28 tonnes in 2024. This represents an increase of nearly 30 per cent, a situation which has prompted the French government to launch a new initiative for regional cooperation. For the authorities, this increase confirms the region’s role as a key hub on international drug routes, linking production areas in Latin America with consumer markets, particularly in Europe. 

Strength in unity

The Antilles-Guyana Regional Cooperation Conference (CCRAG) 2026 aimed to “strengthen the regional cooperation network at technical and operational levels”, but also to “demonstrate a commitment at the highest level to combating illicit trafficking in the Antilles-Guyana region”, according to a press release from the Ministry of the Interior. To this end, the programme was organised into two phases. From 29 June to 2 July, thematic conferences brought together around a hundred officials from states and organisations in Latin America and the Caribbean. On 2 and 3 July, an international conference took place in the presence of heads of state and government. For the Minister for Overseas Territories, Naïma Moutchou, the mission is clear: “We will never allow drug traffickers to hijack the future of our overseas territories. Wherever they advance, the Republic will respond with authority, cooperation and protection.” 

A five-point plan

This conference forms part of a wider plan to combat drug trafficking. The plan is structured around five key points. Each of these comprises several operational measures, backed by financial, human and material resources. The plan includes: strengthening cooperation with states in the Caribbean and Latin America, securing entry points to French territories, supporting local communities, combating criminal networks and protecting officers at risk. To this end, fifteen regional cooperation agreements have been signed since 2025 and twenty new agreements are in the pipeline. Law enforcement and customs agencies will be provided with additional resources, including the purchase of millimetre-wave scanners to better detect drugs concealed by drug couriers, and the deployment of a medium-endurance drone to better detect trafficking at sea off Guadeloupe. Finally, specialist units dedicated to combating firearms offences and armed robberies are set to be established, accompanied by an increase in staffing levels at the Anti-Narcotics Office in the West Indies. 

Connectivity, health, employment: other Caribbean priorities

Beyond security, the CCRAG’s discussions focused on several day-to-day issues facing the region’s territories. Louis Mussington highlighted, in particular, the challenges relating to Sargassum, health and employment. The President of the Collectivité emphasised the importance of connectivity between the islands, which is essential not only for facilitating the movement of goods and people but also for strengthening trade.
CCRAG 2026 featured thematic workshops designed to cover various areas of regional cooperation and thus identify common avenues for discussion. The discussion session on Sargassum, for its part, highlighted the need for international governance – political, economic and scientific – to tackle this phenomenon, which affects many Caribbean territories. The Collectivité of Saint-Martin also hosted a session on the cultural and creative industries, with a view to exploring the development of a sector-wide framework across the Greater Caribbean.
Beyond the announcements made, the CCRAG carries symbolic significance. From Fort-de-France, the Republic aims to set out a strategy to combat illicit trafficking, whilst also strengthening the integration of French territories into their regional environment.