Summit of the Americas Delivers on Education

Improvement to education delivery in the Region is one of the main agreements coming out of the Seventh Summit of the Americas, held in Panama City, between April 10 and 15.

Delivering a Statement on the Summit, in the Senate, on April 17, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. A.J. Nicholson, said the forum signed off on the agreements reached, and financial institutions will be involved in the implementation process.

“These will be implemented in collaboration with various Inter-American institutions, and multilateral financial institutions. Among the proposals is the establishment of an Inter-American Education System, to improve the quality of education in the hemisphere,” Senator Nicholson said.

He noted that Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson, used the occasion to encourage the 35-member grouping, to take action in the sharing of prosperity with equity, given the high level of poverty in the region.

“She also highlighted the plight of middle income countries, and the need for measures to address their situation. Heads of Government also addressed the issue of United States/Venezuela relations, in light of the US Executive Order on Venezuela,” Senator Nicholson said.

“The Prime Minister urged the United States and Venezuela, two longstanding and valued friends of Jamaica, to seek to resolve their differences through constructive dialogue in the interest of peace and unity in the hemisphere,” the Minister added.

Senator Nicholson told the Upper House that the Summit had inputs from youth, business interests, heads of universities, and civil society, with representations from Jamaica.  Of note, he said, was the meeting between US President, Barack Obama, and President of Cuba, Raul Castro.

“It also provided an opportunity for Jamaica to hold a number of bilateral encounters with colleague Heads and Ministers. The Summit showed that our hemisphere has much of which we can and should be proud,” he said.

The Senator highlighted that the rapprochement between Cuba and the US, and the removal of Cuba from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism, represented another step towards the gradual normalisation of relations between the two countries, and strengthening the trend towards unity and peace in the Americas.