Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Simone Rudder (right) and Ambassador Miriam A. Mac Intosh, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Republic of Suriname, as they spoke on areas of co-operation to be worked on, during the Third Meeting of the Barbados-Suriname Joint Commission.
Participants from various local ministries and departments gathered at the Accra Beach Hotel and Spa, for the Third Meeting of the Barbados-Suriname Joint Commission.
Barbados is excited about the prospects of its relationship with the Republic of Suriname and looks forward to working more closely with this CARICOM partner.
As such, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade hosted the Third Meeting of the Barbados-Suriname Joint Economic and Technical Co-operation Commission yesterday, at the Accra Beach Hotel and Spa. That meeting, which was chaired by Barbados’ Ambassador to CARICOM, David Comissiong, brought together senior officials from both countries, to deliberate on a wide range of areas including tourism, agriculture, trade and investment, technical and vocational training, as well as youth and culture. The service of transport for goods and people between the two countries also featured prominently on the agenda.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Simone Rudder, in delivering remarks, acknowledged that Barbados and Suriname established diplomatic relations in March 1978 and have sought to foster amicable and co-operative ties since then. It was back in 2005, she indicated, that the Governments of Barbados and Suriname signed an Agreement for Bilateral Co-operation, which governs the Joint Commission. More recently, in November 2018, she said, Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley and her Surinamese counterpart President, His Excellency Desiré Bouterse, signed the Brokopondo Programme for Co-operation 2018-2021, to further strengthen the bilateral relationship between the two countries.
Yesterday’s meeting served to work out closer arrangements for areas of co-operation on which the two countries can work and facilitate more concrete action.
“As we look to our programme for today and the areas of co-operation proposed for discussion, we see the continued building blocks for a meaningful partnership where Barbados and Suriname can complete and complement each other. We are truly a natural fit. We fit in terms of helping each other, in both our areas of need and our areas of strength,” Rudder remarked.
“The topics today include agriculture, natural resources, culture, education and training, youth development, sports, tourism, energy, and trade and investment, as well as the relevant cross-cutting facilitation measures, which are necessary to take our work in the sectors forward,” the PS added.
Ambassador Miriam A. Mac Intosh, Permanent Secretary for Geopolitical Affairs and International Development Co-operation in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Republic of Suriname, was equally as excited about what the future holds for Barbados and Suriname, as the two countries seek to deepen their level of co-operation.
Pointing out that she was indeed signalling the seriousness of the Government of the Republic of Suriname in advancing bilateral relations in the areas outlined by PS Rudder, PS Mac Intosh told those gathered from various local ministries and departments, as well as those listening in by video conference, that the aim of the session was to come up with concrete projects and areas of collaboration, which can be worked on soon.
“We will continue our discussions. So don’t see this as a one-off meeting, but see this as a coming together as a joint commission in this mechanism to discuss these areas and then we go back to our respective countries and ministries and then we continue to do the work. Because as you know, our leaders are regularly asking us for updates and concrete action. So we cannot be slacking on what we are doing. So that is why I would like to recommit our seriousness to this relationship,” PS Mac Intosh stated. (RSM)