News Releases

UWI Diplomatic Academy to Boost Consular Affairs-related Capacity in Caribbean Foreign Ministries

For Release Upon Receipt - July 7, 2023

St. Augustine


ST. AUGUSTINE, Trinidad and Tobago. July 7, 2023 – The Diplomatic Academy of the Caribbean (DAOC), a division of The University of the West Indies' (The UWI) Institute of International Relations is gearing up to host the third edition of its ground-breaking training module, "Advances in Consular Affairs in the Modern Diplomatic Mission: A Caribbean Perspective." With a dynamic virtual teaching format running from July 10th to 13th, this highly anticipated module will bring together over 15 participants from eight member states and one associate member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

"Cohort three participants of this module are mainly foreign ministry functionaries based either in Capital or posted overseas in the diplomatic and/or consular corps," said the DAOC Manager, Dr. Nand C. Bardouille. He noted, "With the increased and varied demands on the consular function, coupled with the need for continuous upskilling in this field in regional foreign ministries, this ground-breaking module is more important than ever. This module offering, which the DAOC first hosted in 2021, consistently attracts strong interest among our stakeholders. We are pleased to offer this training for a third time in as many years."

Ms. Gail P. Guy, a retired diplomat and protocol consultant, serves as the module's lead facilitator. Ms. Guy underscores, "The contemporary consular function has grown in prominence and complexity. It is a key goal of this state of the art, real-world oriented module to expose participants to the required input (especially data/information) to facilitate efficient and effective responses to requests from their capitals or from their nationals for information—especially in times of crisis at home and/or abroad."

Dr. Natalie Dietrich Jones, a Research Fellow at The UWI (Mona) Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social and Economic Studies, serves as the teaching team's co-facilitator. Specializing in migration, governance, and border geographies, Dr. Dietrich Jones will delve into the role of consular officers in migration-related matters.

As a complement to the primary teaching team's module-related sessions, the intensive teaching programme incorporates an expert-led roundtable. It features a panel of serving senior diplomats and consular officials, who will lend their respective perspectives and insights to the module's core subject matter. 

This module is the final teaching-related offering from the DAOC for the academic year 2022/23. The DAOC has set priorities and its teaching programme for the upcoming academic year, taking its stakeholders' training needs in the field of diplomatic studies into consideration. 

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About the Diplomatic Academy of the Caribbean

The DAOC is the Caribbean's premier professional development-oriented diplomatic studies centre. An integral part of The University of the West Indies’ Institute of International Relations (IIR), it was established in 2014. The DAOC has a primary teaching mandate in the area of diplomatic studies, offering short, highly specialized training modules in the broad field of diplomatic studies. For Caribbean professionals seeking to expand their capabilities to advance an international career, the DAOC is a trusted educational partner. Combining a world-class suite of curricular offerings, which align with topical policy and learning trends, with a programme of advocacy and partnerships regarding the relationship between diplomacy and the Caribbean, the Diplomatic Academy provides a unique setting for stakeholders to deepen diplomatic skills/knowledge and enhance policy expertise.

The DAOC has yielded substantial and complementary benefit to the IIR, which was established in 1966 by agreement between the Government of Trinidad and Tobago and the Government of Switzerland.

Integral to the DAOC's mission is its commitment to help close human resources capacity gaps in international affairs and diplomacy in the Caribbean, by providing capacity-building and skills development training in diplomacy to up and coming diplomats and to aspiring diplomats from the Caribbean Region. This diplomatic learning and training facility also strengthens the University's capacities for research/analysis, knowledge‐sharing, advocacy, and partnerships and dialogue on the relationship between diplomacy and the Caribbean broadly conceived, with the goal of helping to facilitate policy-relevant awareness-raising on international affairs issues of import (and that are topical) to the Region.

The Diplomatic Academy derives its character from its global outlook, real-world impact, and Caribbean mindedness which, in sum, constitute The DAOC Advantage™. For more information, please visit:  https://sta.uwi.edu/daoc. 

About The University of the West Indies 

The UWI has been and continues to be a pivotal force in every aspect of Caribbean development; residing at the centre of all efforts to improve the well-being of people across the region for the past 75 years. 

From a university college of London in Jamaica with 33 medical students in 1948, The UWI is today an internationally respected, global university with near 50,000 students and five campuses: Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, Five Islands in Antigua and Barbuda and its Open Campus, and global centres in partnership with universities in North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa and Europe. 

The UWI offers over 800 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Culture, Creative and Performing Arts, Food and Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities and Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science and Technology, Social Sciences, and Sport. As the Caribbean’s leading university, it possesses the largest pool of Caribbean intellect and expertise committed to confronting the critical issues of our region and wider world. 

The UWI has been consistently ranked among the top universities globally by the most reputable ranking agency, Times Higher Education (THE). The UWI is the only Caribbean-based university to make the prestigious lists since its debut in the rankings in 2018. In addition to its leading position in the Caribbean in the World University Rankings, it is also in the top 25 for Latin America and the Caribbean and the top 100 global Golden Age universities (between 50 and 80 years old).  The UWI is also featured among the leading universities on THE’s Impact Rankings for its response to the world’s biggest concerns, outlined in the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Good Health and Wellbeing; Gender Equality and Climate Action.

 2023 marks The UWI’s 75th anniversary. The Diamond jubilee milestone themed “UWI at 75. Rooted. Ready. Rising.” features initiatives purposely designed and aligned to reflect on the past, confront the present, and articulate plans for the future of the regional University. 

Learn more at www.uwi.edu 

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