Bahamian prime minster praises "very, very progressive" Commonwealth Secretary-General

20 July 2017
News

In a wide ranging discussion, the prime minister spoke about ways in which the Commonwealth could help The Bahamas, especially around protecting marine life and marine conservation.

Bahamian prime minster praises "very, very progressive" Commonwealth Secretary-General 

Secretary-General Patricia Scotland paid a courtesy call to the recently elected prime minister of The Bahamas, Dr Hubert Minnis at his offices.

They were joined by the country's foreign affairs minister, Darren Henfield.

In a wide ranging discussion, the prime minister spoke about ways in which the Commonwealth could help The Bahamas, especially around protecting marine life and marine conservation. 

Secretary-General Scotland said that last month, on the occasion of the UN Ocean Conference in New York, there was over whelming support for the Commonwealth proposal to create a 'Blue Charter' to help sustainable ocean development. 

The Commonwealth Secretariat provides technical assistance to member states in securing areas of maritime jurisdiction, and managing the marine and natural environment in a sustainable way to maximise economic potential. 

Of the 52 Commonwealth nations, 45 are ocean states and 24 are small island developing states. 

The Secretary-General also explained her determination to reverse the human effects of the existential threat of climate change to many of the member states using a model based on regenerative development to reverse climate change (RDRCC). 

Prime Minister Minnis described Secretary-General as "very, very progressive and ahead of your time". He said The Bahamas was more than happy to join her regenerative development climate change efforts. 

The prime minister also said he would back plans for a small medium enterprise (SME) trade hub in the Caribbean.