PM for 28th Annual Conference of the Caribbean and Americas

Prime Minister P.J. Patterson will address the plenary session of the 28th annual Conference of the Caribbean and Latin America, which will be held on Tuesday, December 7 at the Miami Intercontinental Hotel.
Other Caribbean leaders will also attend the three-day event titled “An Integrated Third Border” to discuss the key challenges faced by the Caribbean and Central American economies, and the potential impact on the United States and Florida specifically.
Nearly 1,000 conference delegates will participate in forums to discuss issues relevant to the area such as immigration, economic development, security, customs, health, telecommunications, environment and labour among others.
Participants comprising public and private sector officials as well as political leaders from the region will also address implications of free trade and regional integration. In addition, the humanitarian crisis in Haiti and the role of the Haitian business community in the Diaspora, in Florida and the USA will form part of the topics for discussion.
With the impact of the 2004 hurricane season on the Caribbean region and the USA, disaster preparedness and effective recovery efforts will be addressed at this year’s conference with an aim to look at national plans across the region, strategies to minimize future damage, and harmonizing building codes regionally.
Other Caribbean leaders expected at this year’s conference are Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Patrick Manning; Prime Minister of Grenada, Keith Mitchell, Haitian Prime Minister, Gerard Latortue; Honduran President, Ricardo Maduro, and President Leonel Fernandez of the Dominican Republic.