Planning and Development Minister Pennelope Beckles is announcing for public information that Trinidad and Tobago is selected to host the XI Annual Consultation of Caribbean Governors of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group on March 5-7, 2023 in Port-of-Spain. The Planning Minister adds that this regional gathering of IDB Caribbean member countries is taking place in preparation for the IDB Annual Meeting, which is scheduled for March 16-19, 2023 in Panama City, Panama.
Minister Beckles serves on the IDB Board of Governors and Mr. Robert Le Hunte, who once served as Minister of Public Utilities, holds the position of Executive Director for The Bahamas, Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago.
It is anticipated that this Meeting will be attended by the respective Caribbean Country Governors for The Bahamas, Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago and members of their respective delegations. This will be the first visit to the Caribbean by recently appointed President of the IDB, Mr. Ilan Goldfajn, who will lead a high-level delegation that includes the IDB’s Executive Vice President; Vice Presidents for Countries, Sectors and Knowledge, and Finance and Administration; the Chief Executive Officers of IDB Invest and IDB Lab; and the General Manager of the Caribbean Country Department. A high-level delegation from the Caribbean Development Bank will also participate.
The principal objective of the Annual Consultation is to build rapport among Governors of Caribbean member countries, the new President of the Inter-American Development Bank, the President of the Caribbean Development Bank, and Senior Management of the Inter-American Development Bank Group to address select strategic challenges affecting our Region effectively. Bilateral meetings will be conducted with participating delegations, as well as separate signings of investment loans with Guyana and Barbados.
As part of his visit, IDB President Goldfajn will have a courtesy call with Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley and other members of Cabinet, during which a loan agreement for the National Water Sector Transformation program will be signed. The President will also be introduced to Trinidad and Tobago’s focus on digital transformation during a project visit with the Ministry of Works and Transport.
The local fare of Trinidad and Tobago will also be on display through a cultural evening organized by the Ministry of Planning and Development on March 6 at Mille Fleurs, courtesy the National Trust. This will provide an opportunity for the IDB President and the IDB delegation to experience some of the built and cultural heritage of Trinidad and Tobago, while sampling a broad spectrum of local food and drink. Angostura will be preparing a signature drink for the event and Ansa McAL will offer appetisers while the Republic Bank Extraordinaires Tassa Drumers will provide some of the entertainment.