PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – Logistics and security planning for the Fifth Summit of the Americas is now in an accelerated mode as Trinidad and Tobago prepares for the meeting of 34 hemispheric heads of state and government in April 2009.
Several teams comprising key national agencies in the areas of accommodation, security, transportation, essential services, conference facilities, marketing, communications, ICT, media planning and protocol, hospitality and special events are currently being established.
A draft national security program to ensure a safe, secure and stable environment to facilitate the Summit is also being fine-tuned.
During a meeting of the Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG) at the Ministerial Level in Medellin, Colombia on June 2, Trinidad and Tobago’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Honourable Paula Gopee-Scoon, who serves as the Chair, will provide an update on preparations for the Summit, including progress on the drafting of Declaration of Commitment of Port of Spain which will be the subject of negotiation among the 34 nations in the upcoming months.
The Declaration will be the main output of the Summit.
A delegation from Trinidad and Tobago comprising representatives of the National Summit Secretariat, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Permanent Mission of Trinidad and Tobago in Washington D.C. will be in attendance in Medellin.
The SIRG will took place on the margins of the 38th General Assembly of the Organisation of American States (OAS) from June 1-3 which was being convened under the theme: “Youth and Democratic Values”.
Prior to the official opening of the General Assembly, the Fifth OAS Private Sector Forum, took place on May 29 and 30, and focused on “Governance for Development and Competitiveness in the Americas: The Role of Public-Private Sector Partnerships”.
On June 25-29, the American Chamber of Commerce of Trinidad and Tobago will host the Business Future of the Americas Conference where the focus will be on energy and the environment. Hemispheric business executives and political leaders as well as the leadership of the 23 American Chambers of Commerce in Latin America and the Caribbean will be in attendance at that event.
These events will lead into the private sector forum that is being planned as part of the Fifth Summit activities.
According to National Coordinator at the Secretariat, Ambassador Luis Alberto Rodriguez, “a significant amount of preparatory work on the Summit has already been undertaken, but there remains quite a lot to be done.”
He said the effort would require not only “seamless inter-agency interaction”, but “a high level of national buy-in and commitment.”
More than 4,000 leaders, officials, delegates and media personnel are expected to be in the country for the Summit.
Ambassador Rodriguez said this called for an unprecedented level of preparation for a national event, especially in the areas of logistics and security.
A Ministerial Steering Committee is overseeing the planning process, supported by the National Secretariat, which also has responsibility for planning and implementing operational aspects of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting due in Trinidad and Tobago in November 2009.
On September 12, 2006, Trinidad and Tobago assumed chairmanship of the Summits of the Americas Process. The Fifth Summit was launched in Port of Spain on February 26, 2008.
Technical work is now far advanced with a Declaration of Commitment of Port of Spain currently being drafted by the National Secretariat.
At least five meetings of the Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG), which comprises the National Summit Coordinators of the 34 nations, are planned for the rest of the year. Most are due to take place in CARICOM countries.
The Concept Paper for the Summit was presented by Minister Gopee-Scoon at a Special Protocolary Session of the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) in April.
Meetings were also convened with member institutions of the JSWG including the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat in Port of Spain on January 24, 2008 and with the Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG), which comprises the National Coordinators of all Member States of the OAS, in Tobago, on February 28-29, 2008, to discuss the main issues contained in the Paper.
A civil society hemispheric forum was convened on May 1-2, 2008 in Miami and a meeting of CARICOM National Coordinators on April 28 in Port of Spain.
The theme of the Fifth Summit is ‘Securing our Citizens’ Future by Promoting Human Prosperity, Energy Security and Environmental Sustainability’.
Summit of the Americas
The Summit of the Americas brings together the 34 democratically elected leaders of the Western Hemisphere to exchange ideas and opinions on the main political, economic, social and security challenges facing the Hemisphere and to develop strategies and solutions to collectively address them.
