Nassau, Bahamas (May 7, 2018) –The Honourable Mark Brantley is among his colleague CARICOM Foreign Ministers at the Twenty-First Meeting of the Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR) being convened in Nassau, Bahamas for the next two days. The Opening Ceremony was well attended by government officials, resident and visiting diplomatic corps and representatives of the Bahamian private sector and civil society.
Addressing the large group of Minsters, hailing from Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, St Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago, the host Minister, the Hon. Darren Henfield, M.P. called on his colleagues to work collectively to derive maximum benefits for the people of the region.
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Barbados, Ms. Cecile Humphrey, delivered remarks on behalf of the outgoing Chair Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister, the Hon. Maxine McClean. She recalled the engagements the Council has had during her tenure and encouraged the members to maintain momentum with the advocacy on matters of crucial interest to the region.
CARICOM Secretary General H.E. Irwin La Roque called attention to the ongoing global issues and reiterated the need for international support for the further development of the region.
St. Kitts and Nevis Minister of Foreign Affairs Brantley intervened on the first agenda item on the strategic approach to CARICOM relations with our North American partners by utilizing mechanisms, including our Caribbean Diaspora and interest groups that can assist in making inroads at the highest political levels.
While in Nassau, Foreign Minister Brantley will also hold bilateral meetings with Canada, Norway, Romania and the United States.
The meeting will continue on Tuesday, 8th May 2018 when issues including reform of the United Nations, resilience to reduce vulnerability to disaster risk and the effects of climate change, blacklisting, and CARICOM’s participation in the upcoming meetings of G7 and G20.
