Surinames Albert Ramdin assumed this Friday, May 30 as general secretary of the Organization of American States (OAS), replacing Luis Almagro, and announced that the humanitarian crisis in Haiti will be at the top of his agenda.
Ramdin delivered his inaugural speech before the Permanent Council of the OAS, which last March elected it unanimously, after the withdrawal of his rival, the Paraguayan Rubén Ramírez Lozcano, related to President Donald Trump, due to lack of support.
“Nowhere on the continent democracy, the rule of law, security, human rights and development than in Haiti are more threatened. Haiti will be at the top of our agenda,” said Ramdin, who became the first general secretary of Caribbean origin.
Surinames announced the relaunch of the group of friends of Haiti, a platform to coordinate support for that country, and will seek to strengthen cooperation with other regional and international actors, such as Caricom and the United Nations.
Ramdin recalled that the mandate of the Presidential Council of Transition governing Haiti concludes next February, so he warned: “We don’t have much time.”
The new general secretary declared that his management at the head of the agency will be aimed at achieving results and actions against immediate needs in countries such as Haiti and Venezuela, although he did not delve into the situation of the latter.
His statements occur after the Secretary of State of the United States, Marco Rubio, questioned last week the management of the OAS in the crisis in Haiti and encouraged the agency to take a step forward.
During his inaugural speech, both in English and Spanish, Ramdin remarked that the OAS must prioritize gender and social equity, he announced working groups on the impact of the climatic crisis and qualified the immigration crisis in the continent as a tragedy.
He also highlighted the importance of the body’s financial sustainability, whose largest donor is the United States, and announced that next July will present a reform of the organization chart to make the OAS more effective.
Ramdin also thanked the work of his predecessor, the Uruguayan Luis Almagro, who highlighted his commitment to peace, democracy and human rights.
“This institution is not only necessary, but indispensable; we must now act so that the OAS marks the difference and promotes a hemisphere of peace, democracy and prosperity for all,” he said.
67, he was born before Surinam became independent from the Netherlands in 1975 and studied social geography at the University of Amsterdam.
It was number two of the OAS between 2005 and 2015 during the mandate of the Chilean José Miguel Insulza and, since 2020, it was the foreign minister of his country.
Ramdin campaigned for the OAS Secretary General with a call to the dialogue and the unit within the body, after a decade marked by strong divisions between the right and left governments of the continent.