Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Joy-Ann Skinner (front row, third from left); President of the Caribbean Development Bank, Daniel Best (front row, left); acting Head and Human Rights Adviser, Commonwealth Secretariat Human Rights Unit, Justin Pettit (front row, fourth from right); and Human Rights Adviser, Yashasvi Nain (right), pose for a photo with participants of the workshop at the CDB headquarters. (C. Pitt/BGIS)
Local public officers across the government sector with responsibility for drafting reports to International Human Rights Treaty Bodies are participating in a three-day workshop aimed at building Barbados’ capacity to prepare and submit reports.
The workshop is being hosted by the Commonwealth Secretariat Human Rights Unit, in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, at the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) Headquarters, located in Wildey, St. Michael.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Joy-Ann Skinner, noted that Barbados is a party to many human rights conventions and maintains active engagement with a range of international human rights mechanisms that monitor and promote the implementation of international human rights laws.
She explained that reporting on Barbados’ efforts was important, and it was vital to enhance the understanding of those who submit reports on behalf of the country.
“It is important to recognise that these reports are not merely procedural. They are vital tools for transparency, accountability and continuous improvement in the promotion and protection of human rights in our country,” Ms. Skinner stated.
She encouraged participants to have open dialogue and actively participate throughout the workshop, adding: “I’m confident that by working together to enhance our reporting capacity to human rights treaty bodies, we will achieve our ultimate objective, which is to fulfil our obligations and to reduce incidences of outstanding reporting.”
Acting Head and Human Rights Adviser, Commonwealth Secretariat Human Rights Unit, Justin Pettit, noted that the sessions are geared at enhancing the understanding of the processes and intricacies involved in preparing and submitting reports to human rights treaty bodies.
He indicated that Government has shown a strong interest in strengthening its national reporting system and commended the Ministry for its commitment to bolstering Barbados’ reporting capacity.
He added that the Secretariat would provide ongoing technical assistance to Barbados in compiling reports to treaty bodies.
Mr. Pettit noted that the workshop was timely and important given that Barbados was in the process of preparing its national report to the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
“Your efforts will be crucial in strengthening Barbados’ voice and visibility on the global stage, while also ensuring Barbados meets its international human rights obligations at home,” the Human Rights Adviser said.
The workshop will cover topics such as an overview of the United Nations human rights system, reporting requirements and reporting cycles, simplified reporting procedures, benefits of reporting, and data collection methodology.
President of the CDB, Daniel Best, highlighted the importance of the workshop in building stronger institutions and transforming lives through effective human rights reporting, and highlighted the role of data in responding to the needs of the citizenry.
“We need data. We cannot capture data without appropriately reporting. We can’t! Reporting can seem somewhat onerous. It is perhaps not the most sexy thing that you’re doing in your career, but it is tremendously, tremendously important….
“So, what this workshop, therefore, is calling us to do is to stand up for the persons who are not in this room, and represent them at the highest level, nationally, regionally, and globally,” Mr. Best stressed.
Author: Sheena Forde-Craigg
Source: https://gisbarbados.gov.bb/blog/workshop-to-benefit-barbados-reports-to-human-rights-bodies/ ·
