Prime Minister Hon. Philip J Pierre, will on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, formally open a United Nations Seminar on Decolonisation, which is to be held at the Sandals Grande Hotel from May 11- 13. The Pacific Regional Seminar on Decolonisation is held under the auspices of the UN General Assembly’s Special Committee on Decolonisation, commonly known as the C -24. The seminar is held annually for the C-24 to obtain the views of the representatives of Non-Self Governing territories, Member States, members of civil society, and other stakeholders on policies that can assist the Special Committee in advancing the decolonisation process.

The theme for the 2022 Seminar is “Advancement of the Non-Self-Governing Territories through the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic and Beyond”. It will be presided over by Ambassador Keisha Aniya McGuire, Grenada’s Permanent Representative to the UN and the current Chair of the Special Committee.

There are seventeen Non-Self-Governing Territories (NSGTs) under the purview of the Special Committee: American Samoa, Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands (Malvinas)*, French Polynesia, Gibraltar, Guam, Montserrat, New Caledonia, Pitcairn, Saint Helena, Tokelau, Turks and Caicos Islands, United States Virgin Islands and Western Sahara. The administering Powers are France, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Approximately one hundred participants, comprising Special Committee Members, other United Nations Member States, administering Powers, as well as representatives of the Non-Self Governing Territories, civil society, non-governmental organizations, experts, and regional organisations have registered for the Seminar.

The Opening Ceremony for the Seminar commences at 10 a.m. on Wednesday. May 11. In addition to the Welcome Address by Prime Minister Hon. Philip J Pierre, the seminar will include an address by the C-24 Chair, Ambassador McGuire, and a video message from UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.