THE Government of Guyana presented to the General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS), which will meet until Friday in Antigua and Barbuda, its request for support from the countries of the continent for its candidate Muhammad Ibrahim, a renowned agronomist and international manager, to become the next Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).

According to a press release, Ambassador Samuel Hinds, head of the Guyana delegation to the OAS Assembly said, “I take this opportunity to announce that the Government of Guyana has nominated the highly qualified and experienced Dr. Muhammad Ibrahim to be the next Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) in the election to be held by ministers in November. We will be seeking and hope to count on the support of your respective governments.”

It added that 14 foreign ministers from countries such as Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru, as well as the US Under Secretary of State, are participating in the OAS General Assembly that began on Wednesday.

According to the official list of delegations distributed by the OAS and released by the Spanish news agency EFE, the Assembly is being attended by the foreign ministers of Bolivia (Celinda Sosa), Colombia (Laura Sarabia), Costa Rica (Arnoldo André), Peru ( Elmer Schialer) and the Dominican Republic (Roberto Álvarez).

Also present are the foreign ministers of several Caribbean countries, including the host, Antigua and Barbuda, as well as The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Haiti, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

The release said that the “number two” at the State Department, Christopher Landau, is the head of the US delegation, while the deputy foreign ministers of Canada, Chile, Ecuador, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, and Uruguay are representing their countries.

Brazil is being represented by the Secretary General of Foreign Affairs and Mexico by the Director General of American Regional Organizations.

Meanwhile, Argentina, Honduras, El Salvador, and Jamaica sent ambassadors and representatives to the OAS.

“At the American University of Antigua, the delegations discussed the crisis in Haiti, considered the most serious in the region today, in a meeting that marked the debut of the new Secretary General, Albert Ramdin of Suriname.

“In this context, Hinds requested support for Guyana’s candidate for the Presidency of IICA, a key organisation for agricultural public policy and animal and plant health in the Americas, which will have a new Director General in January, when the second term of Argentine veterinarian Manuel Otero ends,” the release said.

It added that his replacement will be elected by the ministers of agriculture of the countries of the Americas when they meet in early November in Brasilia.

“Guyana’s president, Mohamed Irfaan Ali, announced this month that Ibrahim would be a candidate, with the support of 13 other Caribbean nations, the release said.