Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar met Monday with the Secretary General of the United Nations and told Ban Ki-moon she has serious concerns about the how the Petroleum Fund is being used. The meeting was at the request of the UNC chief who wanted to discuss matters of importance to the region and to Trinidad and Tobago.
She suggested that the fund should focus on the needs of people and identified three areas which she believed are of tremendous significance and which could better be addressed by the fund:
- Pan Caribbean Life Fund for Children
- A Regional Plan for the Environment
- Women and Development
Ban applauded the People's Partnership government's decision to set up a Ministry of the People, describing it as unique in the world.
Persad-Bissessar explained that her objective in establishing the ministry was to deepen participatory democracy and to provide an institution which would quickly and efficiently resolve problems, thereby bringing government closer to the people.
The Secretary General spoke about criminal activity, narco trafficking and transnational crime, stating that they are a threat to social stability in the region.
He offered to provide technical and logistical support to the Government of Trinidad and Tobago through the offices of the United Nations in Port of Spain and UNODC (UN Office for Drug and Crime) to deal with these challenges.
Persad-Bissessar assured Ban the that her Government would work alongside the United Nations and CARICOM, to address the concerns. Trinidad and Tobago has lead responsibility for Crime and Security in the CARICOM Quasi-Cabinet.
The Secretary General also encouraged Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar to attend the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Summit and the General Debate of the United Nations General Assembly in September 2010.
And he suggested that she address the General Assembly in her capacity as Chair of the Commonwealth.
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