Barbados’ Permanent Representative to the United Nations and Other International Organisations in Geneva, Ambassador Chad Blackman, has held talks with the recently-appointed UNCTAD Acting Secretary-General, Isabelle Durant.
Ms. Durant, whose substantive post is Deputy Secretary-General, was appointed acting Secretary-General on February 16, 2021, following the resignation of Dr. Mukhisa Kituyi, which took effect on February 15, 2021.
One of Ms. Durant’s early actions on assumption of her new responsibilities was to meet with Ambassador Blackman to discuss the way forward for the UNCTAD 15 Conference, which is scheduled to be held in Barbados from October 3 to 8, 2021.
The two sides have committed to work in close partnership towards the success of the Conference in these challenging times.
The Conference is the highest decision-making body of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and is held every four years. It was initially scheduled to be held from October 18 to 23, 2020.
However, those dates were later pushed back to April 25 to 30, 2021, and subsequently to October 1 to 8, 2021, because of the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the Conference, policy makers assess the current trade and development issues; discuss policy options; and formulate global responses to the challenges affecting States – particularly developing states.
The Conference also sets the organisation’s mandate and work priorities.