PM at Caricom Heads of Government meeting – Haiti

Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves is presently in Haiti, attending the 24th Inter-sessional Meeting of the Caricom Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Heads of Government.{{more}}

He left the state on Sunday and is accompanied by his wife Eloise, the Minister responsible for Foreign Affairs Dr Douglas Slater, the Ambassador to the United Nations, Camillo Gonsalves and the Head of RIDU, Ellsworth John.

Michel Martelly, President of Haiti was the feature speaker at the opening of the historic 24th Inter-sessional Meeting on Monday in Port-au-Prince yesterday.

The two-day meeting will be the first ever held by CARICOM Heads of Government in Haiti, which became a member of the Community in 2002. President Martelly became Chair of the Community in January 2013 and will serve for six months in that position. At Monday’s opening, the immediate past Chair Dr Kenny D Anthony, Prime Minister of Saint Lucia and Ambassador Irwin LaRocque, Secretary-General of CARICOM also delivered statements.

Intersessional Meetings of CARICOM Heads of Government are held in the first quarter of every year, with the Regular Meetings taking place around 4 July, the anniversary date of the signing of the Treaty of Chaguaramas which established CARICOM. The Intersessional is less formal than the Regular Meeting and does not have a ceremonial opening.

The Karibe Convention Centre in Petion Ville is the venue for the meeting.