Published 18th June 2007, 10:27am

Some 40 delegates and observers from overseas are scheduled to attend the 32nd regional conference of the Caribbean, the Americas and the Atlantic Region of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA). The event takes place on Grand Cayman for a week from 25 June.

Hosted by the Cayman Islands Branch of the CPA, the conference will have delegates considering its theme Embracing Change in the Way we do Business: Efficient Government.

Delegates to the event that will take place at the Marriott Resort will include Speakers, Presidents of Senates; Ministers, MPs and MLAs from Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda; Bahamas; Barbados; Belize; Bermuda; British Virgin Islands; Grenada; Guyana; Jamaica; Montserrat; Nevis; St. Kitts and Nevis; St. Lucia; Trinidad and Tobago; Turks and Caicos as well as host Cayman, and observers from the CPA Secretariat in London and the Canadian and UK CPA Branches.

The conference will be formally opened by His Excellency the Governor, Mr Stuart Jack, CVO, on Monday 25 June at 10 am. The conference will be the first in this region to be attended by the CPA's newly appointed Secretary General, the Hon. Dr. William F Shija, an educator and former Minister from Tanzania. Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, the Hon. Edna M. Moyle welcomes the gathering while the Hon. Dr. Shija; the Leader of Government Business, the Hon. Kurt Tibbetts and the Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. W McKeeva Bush offer remarks at the opening ceremony. Chairman of the organising sub-committee, MLA W Alfonso Wright proposes a vote of thanks.

As part of the inauguration the Royal Cayman Islands Police Band will present a musical prelude. During the event, members from the Cayman Islands Cadet Corps will be on hand bearing the flags to welcome delegates from each country in alphabetical order.

During the conference, Members from the host branch will make four presentations:

• The Attorney General, the Hon. Samuel Bulgin, QC - Law Enforcement and Interdiction: Regional Cooperation;
• Bodden Town MLA Osbourne Bodden - Disaster Preparedness and Recovery;
• Minister of Education the Hon. Alden M McLaughlin - Tertiary Education Towards a New Regional Approach; and
• West Bay MLA Rolston M Anglin - Environmental Protection: Landfill and Disposal of Refuse/Beautification.

Other presentations at the conference are on the following topics: Democracy and Human Development: The Involvement of the Citizen; The Role of a Second Chamber in Legislatures in the Caribbean; Underachievement of Male Youth in the Region; The Role of the Civil Servant: Embracing a New Culture of Governance; Climate Change: What to Expect in the Future and The Commonwealth, the CPA and Parliamentary Democracy: How to Improve Communications with the Public.

Planned events for the attendees include a tour of Grand Cayman; a cultural presentation as well as receptions including one hosted by the Governor and Mrs. Mariko Jack at Government House.