Guyanese back from US-sponsored leadership training

US Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Bryan Hunt recently met with Annette Jaundoo upon her return from the United States after participating in the prestigious Embassy-sponsored International Visitor Leadership Programme (IVLP) exchange.

Jaundoo participated in an IVLP exchange on “Human and Civil Rights for All,” from June 7 to 30, the US Embassy said in a release. Jaundoo, who is the Executive Director for a US Agency for International Development (USAID)-supported non-governmental organisation – Family Awareness Consciousness Togetherness (FACT), shared her IVLP experience with the Chargé d’Affaires and US Embassy representatives. She underscored the value of this experience and discussed how she intends to apply the knowledge gained to the benefit of her organisation and the NGO Coordinating Committee for HIV/AIDS to service NGOs and more particularly, members of the Lesbian, Gays, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Community. She also pledged to work more closely with faith-based organisations, the private sector, and grassroots agencies towards strengthening alliances for the LGBT community.

During the programme, Jaundoo and her counterparts from the Caribbean visited several cities, including Washington, DC; Memphis, Tennessee; Little Rock, Arkansas; Des Moines, Iowa; and San Francisco, California. These visits provided varied insights and understanding of how civil society organisations support the LGBT community and influence human rights policy at the local, state, national, and international levels in the United States.

Through in-depth discussions, meetings, and site visits, Jaundoo and her colleagues had the opportunity to review the legal and political framework for recent advances in civil and economic rights for LGBT Americans, as well as international and hemispheric initiatives for the protection of LGBT human rights. Participants also explored the evolution of public opinion in the United States during the past two decades and the influence of both traditional and social media.

Chargé d’Affaires Hunt reaffirmed the US Government’s commitment to work with and strengthen the role of civil society organisations and advocates on behalf of human rights issues within and through multilateral fora.

He encouraged Jaundoo to build on the many professional linkages made with US institutions and other IVLP participants from countries throughout the Caribbean to strengthen her work and that of her organisation for the benefit of Guyanese people.