Fostering Accountability in the Caribbean through Civil Society Outreach

About 30 civil society participants from 10 Caribbean countries attended a regional outreach webinar to the Caribbean from November 15 to 16. Participants represented a diverse group of organizations working on issues related to indigenous heritage, environmental conservation, women’s rights, poverty reduction, governance and justice, amongst others.

Representatives from CAO’s dispute resolution and compliance functions highlighted  CAO’s mandate, functions, complaint handling process and case eligibility criteria. Participants were also given concrete examples of how CAO works with complainants, with case studies from Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Question and answer sessions provided opportunities for in-depth conversation and knowledge sharing.

CAO co-hosted the webinar, along with the accountability mechanisms of the Caribbean Development Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, UN Development Programme, and World Bank. The Barbados-based Caribbean Policy Development Centre (CPDC) also played a key role in supporting the event and convening participants from its network of organizations.

Additional CAO outreach events are scheduled to take place in the coming months.