Port of Spain (May 5, 2011) – The Secretariat of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) received a courtesy visit from HE Tatsuaki Iwata, Ambassador of Japan in Trinidad & Tobago. HE Tatsuaki Iwata was accompanied by the Second Secretary of the Embassy of Japan, Mr. Koji Fujimura, the Economic Adviser Ms. Atsuko Ushida and the Political/Economic Researcher Ms. Tricia Bally

During the visit, the Secretary General of the ACS, Ambassador Andrade Falla, accompanied by the Director of Transport and Disaster Risk Reduction of the ACS Mr. Eduardo José Gonzalez, the Trade Director of the ACS Ms. Ariadna Perez, the Legal Advisor of the ACS Dulce María García y García and the Tourism Advisor of the ACS Ms. Amanda Charles met Ambassador Iwata in order to provide a general background and ongoing projects of the ACS. In the discussions, particular emphasis was placed on the Caribbean Sea Commission’s activities and Disaster Risk Reduction.

The Ambassador of Japan HE Iwata expressed his high interest on issues such as climate change, economic and social development, making special emphasis on the need of scientific research, which will be beneficial for the region; therefore, Ambassador Iwata manifested his interest to be informed on the purpose and functioning of the ACS Secretariat.

Ambassador Andrade provided a detailed and informative presentation on every focal area of the Secretariat. However, special mention was made on the Project: Strengthening of the Hydro meteorological Operations and Services in the Caribbean SIDS (SHOCS), which aims to enhance the capacity of ACS on the strategic planning of the entire process of Disaster Risk Reduction, improve the capacity of the National Meteo-Hydrological Systems (NMHS’s) and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) agencies in order to provide services for safety and preparedness against natural hazards and consequently, in a long term, allow the Caribbean societies to be better prepared for adverse effects of natural disasters and harmful impacts of climate change.

Moreover, the Secretary General also made special emphasis on the successful Conference: “Connecting the Caribbean and Central America”, held on October 20th 2010, and hosted by the Chamber of Industry and Commerce of Trinidad and Tobago in conjunction with the ACS and assistance of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce of Guatemala. The conference focused on identifying and promoting business opportunities between the two regions.

Following this important meeting, the ACS Secretariat is confident that ACS-Japan relations will be reinforced for the benefit of the countries and people of the Greater Caribbean.