Guyana will be represented at key regional and international meetings during the period November 24 to December 15, 2016.
Addressing the post-Cabinet press briefing at the Ministry of the Presidency today, Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, explained that Guyana’s attendance at these meetings, forums and workshops will facilitate the building of capacity of key Government resource personnel in the areas of transnational organised crime, drug fighting strategies and trade.
Minister Harmon disclosed that Cabinet has approved the attendance of Assistant Commissioner of the Guyana Police Force (GFC), Leslie James at a meeting, of the executive body of the South American Council on Security, Justice and Coordination of Action against Transnational Organised Crime. This meeting will be held in Venezuela from November 24 to 25.
Harmon explained that this meeting will receive reports on processes in actions of specific groups, and assign work on safety, justice and coordinated actions against transnational organised crime. It will also discuss issues to be presented to the Fourth meeting of the Ministers of South American Council on Safety, Justice and Action against Transnational Organised Crime.
Also in Security, Research Officer on Ministry of Public Security, Marissa Green has been given Cabinet’s go-ahead to attend the United Office on Drug and Crime training workshop for policy makers on drug reduction. The workshop will be held in Campinas, Brazil, from December 8 to 10. It will seek to improve the capacities of national policy makers in developing effective strategies that are compliant with international standards and international drug conventions, Minister Harmon said.
Meanwhile, from December 5 to 9, Shawn Naughton of the Foreign Trade Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will represent Guyana at two meetings of the African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group.
According to a GINA report, Naughton will be in attendance at the 19th meeting of the ACP Trade Committee and the 14th meeting of the ACP-EU Joint Ministerial Trade Committee. Minister Harmon said that both meetings will be held in Brussels, Belgium and that they will address trade related issues of concerns to the ACP group of which Guyana is a founding member.
Naughton along with Kerianne Kareem, also of the Foreign Trade Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be in St Vincent and the Grenadines from December 13 to 15 to represent Guyana at the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) – World Trade Organisation (WTO) workshop on trade-led economic growth in the Caribbean.
Minister Harmon explained that the workshop is part of the WTO technical assistance and capacity building support for small economies in the Caribbean. It will seek to enhance awareness and understanding of the factors that could enhance development gains for trade and ways of building of trade capacity in the Caribbean region, the Minister said.
