Activities of the Assistant Secretary General Outside of Headquarters July-December, 2019
ACTIVITIES OF THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL OUTSIDE OF HEADQUARTERS JULY-DECEMBER, 2019
July 3-5, 2019 Castries, Saint Lucia ASG Mendez attended the Fortieth Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community in Saint Lucia, in the margins of which he met with the Minister for Education, Innovation, Gender Relations and Sustainable Development. He discussed with the Hon Minister the challenges of building resilience against natural disasters, as well as the impact on the tourism and fisheries industries of the huge amount of sargassum weed washing ashore. He also met with the Minister for Tourism, Information and Broadcasting, Culture and Creative Industries to explore new opportunities for collaboration in the areas of tourism, culture and creative industries. He was accompanied by Kendall Belisle, Advisor.
Sept 9-11, 2019 Mexico City, Mexico During an official visit to Mexico, ASG Mendez had meetings in Mexico City with a wide range of authorities representing Ministries and State agencies with which the OAS has ongoing projects and initiatives. These officials included: Maximiliano Reyes Zuniga, Undersecretary for Latin America and the Caribbean, Marta Delgado Peralta, Undersecretary for Multilateral Institutions and Human Rights, Noel Gonzalez Segura, Director General of AMEXCID, Maria Edith Bernaldez Reyes, Director General in the Ministry of Education. He visited the OAS National Office and had a full briefing with the staff. Matters discussed with the various authorities included, inter alia, OAS/Mexico bilateral relations; Mexico’s ongoing cooperation available to the OAS and Member States including the Mexican Scholarships program; the Inter-American Teacher Education Network; human rights and empowerment of women; opportunities available to youths in the areas of innovation and competitiveness; and the work of the OAS on migration issues. The ASG was accompanied by Cinnamon Bottaro, Advisor. Pamela Contreras, Administrative Officer made a parallel visit and undertook an administrative audit of the OAS National Office in Mexico as well as refresher training with staff on administrative protocols.
Sept 19-21, 2019 Bridgetown, Barbados ASG Mendez attended the VIII Inter-American Meeting of Ministers of Culture and Highest Appropriate Authorities in Barbados, and delivered closing remarks at said event.
Sept 23, 2019 New York City, New York ASG Mendez participated in the Thirtieth Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs to serve as the Organ of Consultation in application of the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (TIAR).
Sept 25-27, 2019 New York City, New York ASG Mendez attended the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, in New York City. While in New York, he held bilateral meetings with the Secretaries General of SICA and of CARICOM. He was accompanied on this mission by his Advisors Kendall Belisle and Jacinth Henry-Martin
Oct 6-9, 2019 Saint Kitts and Nevis During an official visit to St. Kitts and Nevis the ASG met with H.E. Timothy Harris, Prime Minister, the Hon Shawn Richards, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Education, Youth, Sports, and Culture, Minister of Agriculture, Environment, Hon Eugene Hamilton and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hon Mark Brantley. The matters discussed in the various meetings included, inter alia, St. Kitts & Nevis/OAS bilateral relations; opportunities for youth empowerment especially in the context of education/scholarships, entrepreneurship, innovation and competitiveness; moving towards bilingualism for competitiveness; climate change and the building of resilience to natural disasters. ASG Mendez also delivered a presentation on the OAS to students at 6th Form Colleges in Nevis and St Kitts, and visited the OAS National Office where he met with the staff. The ASG was accompanied on this mission by Jacinth Henry-Martin, Advisor. Gloria Uribe, Administrative Officer undertook a parallel visit, completed an administrative audit of the OAS National Office in St. Kitts and Nevis, and carried out training sessions on administrative protocols.
Oct 31-Nov 2, 2019 Quito, Ecuador ASG Mendez attended the Sixth Meeting of Ministers Responsible for Public Security (MISPA-VI) and delivered closing remarks.
Nov 18-20, 2019 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines ASG Mendez made an official visit to St. Vincent and the Grenadines where he held meetings with Prime Minister Hon. Ralph E. Gonsalves, Minister of Education St. Clair Prince and Minister of Agriculture, Saboto Caesar. The thematic areas discussed included strengthening the bilingual capacity of the Vincentian population through OAS programmes, the Inter- American Teacher Training Network (ITEN), and finding creative solutions to dealing with the sargussum challenge which has been affecting Caribbean tourism and fisheries. The ASG also met with the Director at the Centre for Enterprise Development to discuss opportunities for OAS collaboration in youth entrepreneurship and innovation. He also delivered a lecture at the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Community College. He was accompanied on this mission by Chief of Staff, La Celia Prince
Nov 20-22, 2019 Trinidad and Tobago On his official visit to this Member State, the ASG promoted the visibility of the OAS in Trinidad and Tobago, particularly in the absence of a country representative. He held meetings with the Minister of Education Hon. Anthony Garcia and Minister of Foreign Affairs Hon. Dennis Moses. The thematic areas discussed included the Inter-American Teacher Education Network (ITEN), building bilingual capacity in the population and promoting youth innovation and entrepreneurship. Both Ministers emphasized an interest in greater OAS collaboration in the areas of education and capacity-building and access to technology. The ASG also held a meeting with Secretary General of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS), Dr. June Soomer. The ACS Secretary General outlined gender, youth and education as cross-cutting areas on which the ACS wishes to collaborate with the OAS. She also expressed support for an initiative by ASG Mendez to forge a collaborative platform of International Organizations of which ACS is a part. The ASG was accompanied on this mission by Chief of Staff La Celia Prince.
Dec 2-4, 2019 Bogota, Colombia ASG Mendez attended the Thirtieth Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs to serve as the Organ of Consultation in application of the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (TIAR). During this visit, he also met with representatives of the Pan-American Development Foundation to get a briefing on PADF’s activities in Colombia and to explore concrete avenues for greater collaboration between this agency and the OAS General Secretariat. During his visit to Colombia, the ASG was accompanied by his Executive Assistant, Mayuriel Perez.
Dec 5-6, 2019 San Salvador, El Salvador ASG Mendez atended SICA’s Regional Forum: “Hacía un Plan para el Desarrollo de Centroamérica, Construyendo una región de oportunidades”. The ASG participated as a panelist on the topic of “Migration and Development Dialogue: A Transformative Vision”. He also visited the OAS National Office in the Member State and the new facilities of the International Commission against Impunity in El Salvador (CICIES). The ASG was accompanied by his Executive Assistant Mayuriel Perez.
Dec 8-10, 2019 Nassau, The Bahamas The ASG led an advance mission to The Bahamas, one of the pre- programmed visits to prepare for the 50th Ordinary Session of the General Assembly. The ASG met with H.E. Darren Henfield, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Mr. Peter Deveaux Isaacs, Permanent Secretary to discuss the relevant preparations. The OAS team also visited the proposed sites for the General Assembly and had technical meetings with the core team of The Bahamas charged with the successful coordination of the GA. The ASG was accompanied by La Celia Prince, Chief of Staff, Cinnamon Bottaro, Advisor, Sandra Guaqueta, Conferences Deputy Director and Luiz Coimbra, Conference Specialist. The Secretary General’s special Envoy for The Bahamas, Chet Neymour, also accompanied the delegation. The team worked with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Bahamas on all relevant aspects of plans for a successful outcome.