Understanding the Importance of PAC
Jessica Lapenn
According to Ambassador Lapenn, in joining PAC, Belize will adopt the Declaration on Atlantic Cooperation. She then went on to mention that Atlantic states are also linked by common challenges that threaten livelihoods and exacerbate food insecurity.
Jessica Lapenn, U.S. Ambassador
“There are a lot of new and different challenges, particularly in the climate space, that all of us are grappling with individually, but the truth is, none of us can solve these challenges alone. And so, the Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation is then a platform for working across nations, across geographies, across regions and coming together to solve problems.”
Isani Cayetano
“It’s a brief visit. Nonetheless, what are some of the concerns that you’ve gathered, having met with civil society partners?”
Jessica Lapenn
“So I’ll say first, I was really impressed with the experience and the knowledge, the commitment and track record of civil society here. My meetings with them went late and long because I just kept saying, “I want to learn more.” And I, think that’s interestingly one of the things that’s most exciting about Belize joining the partnership is how much others will learn from Belize’s experience. Specifically, we will do work within the partnership on marine spatial planning and, here, Belize has been a leader.”
Isani Cayetano
“From our perspective, we’re looking at this being a Foreign Affairs initiative, as much as it is for us a Blue Economy initiative. How do these two departments of government come together to fulfill the mandate or what is set forward by PAC?”
Jessica Lapenn
”It’s such a great question. I think that all of these issues are inter-ministerial. In every government, the Government of Belize, the Government of the United States, we need a range of ministries and agencies to work on these issues and to work together. So interestingly, the partnership really thinks about how do we work across countries and within countries. So here I have an opportunity to meet with the range of actors within the government and see how they work together. It’s really impressive. That, for me, was the real takeaway. The understanding is that these are real inter-ministerial challenges and organizations within the government need to work together. I don’t think that’s easy in any case and here it’s very impressive how that works.”
