Last Updated on May 6, 2020, 7:37 AM AST by Anthony Morris
Barbados made history when it won the bid to host the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD 15) ‘s fifteenth session.
However, due to COVID-19, it has been postponed.
The new dates are still to be announced.
The 15th UNCTAD quadrennial conference was to be held in Bridgetown, Barbados.
On UNCTAD’s website, it said, ‘The conference was initially scheduled from October 18 to October 23, 2020, but the session had to be postponed because of the challenges which are being posed by the coronavirus pandemic. The new dates for the session would be communicated later.
The conference is the apex decision-making body of the UNCTAD where the member states make the assessments of the current trade and development issues, formulate global policy responses and discuss policy options.
Barbados was to host the UNCTAD quadrennial conference’s 15th session, while the United Arab Emirates (UAE) were to host the World Investment Forum and the first eCommerce Week for Asia in Abu Dhabi.
The two countries were set to co-chair this year’s events.
The Trade and Development Board of UNCTAD unanimously endorsed the two countries’ generous offers on June 25, 2019.
Dr Mukhisa Kituyi said that the two countries’ agreement to co-host our main global gatherings next year demonstrates south-south cooperation,” UNCTAD Secretary-General.
Barbados and the United Arab Emirates had both made offers to host the quadrennial conference but had mutually agreed to co-host the events.
Dr Kituyi said that they thank them for their leadership on arriving at the win-win solution which has expressed the mutual respect between the two countries.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
