Mélanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs Canada, Sunday officially announced that Maninder Sidhu, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, will travel to Trinidad and Tobago and to Guyana from July 2 to 7, 2023.
During his visit to Trinidad and Tobago, Parliamentary Secretary Sidhu will represent Canada at the opening ceremony of the 45th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). While there, he will also meet with Trinidad and Tobago’s Amery Browne, Minister of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs, and Fitzgerald Hinds, Minister of National Security, to discuss shared political and economic priorities, including furthering trade and investment, and regional security. In addition, Parliamentary Secretary Sidhu will attend a round-table networking event to learn about the opportunities and challenges for Canadian business in Trinidad and Tobago.
During his visit to Guyana, Parliamentary Secretary Sidhu will meet with Hugh Todd, Guyana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, to strengthen the 2 countries’ collaboration on shared priorities, including energy transition and food security. The Parliamentary Secretary will also get a better understanding of Guyana’s economic situation and its opportunities for Canadian companies by meeting key political and commercial stakeholders. In addition, he will have the chance to visit local projects that support migrants and early childhood development in Indigenous communities and that are funded by the Caribbean Regional Development Program and the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives.
“Canada and CARICOM are tightly connected through our deep people-to-people ties, shared economic interests and our commitment to common values, such as democracy, human rights, freedom of expression and the rules-based international order. I am delighted to represent Canada at the CARICOM heads of government meeting in Trinidad and Tobago in celebration of CARICOM’s 50th anniversary. I also look forward to strengthening our bilateral relationship with Guyana, as we are committed to collaborating on shared priorities, such as inclusive economic growth, food security and natural resource management.”
Quick facts
- Canada and Guyana enjoy a close relationship built on more than 50 years of deep people-to-people ties, important trading connections, long-standing collaboration aimed at advancing inclusive economic development and our security partnership.
- Guyana is one of Canada’s largest merchandise trading partners in CARICOM. In 2022, the value of bilateral merchandise trade totalled $294.1 million, with imports valued at $241.4 million and exports valued at $52.7 million.
- Canada has long-standing ties with CARICOM and its members on a wide range of issues, including trade, security and defence, and governance.
- CARICOM comprises 15 full members and 5 associate members. The full members are Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago. The overseas territories of Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands are associate members.
- The Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community meets twice a year at regular and inter-sessional meetings, in summer and winter, respectively. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attended the 44th Regular Meeting in February, 2023.
