President Leonel Fernandez is scheduled to be in the United States from Sunday, 5-9 December visit. On his agenda are events in New York City and Miami.
On Sunday, 5 December, President Fernandez will visit City College at 2 pm for an event organized by the Global Foundation for Development and Democracy and the CUNY Dominican Studies Institute at the City College of New York. The book, “Building Strategic Partnerships for Development: Dominican Republic-New York State” will be launched. The book is a collection of essays written by community activists, scholars and elected officials dealing with the advancement of Dominicans in New York and in the DR.
The following day, President Leonel Fernandez is scheduled to participate in a 6 December energy forum in New York City. The discussion will focus on energy policy and its effect on security, development and climate. Former President Bill Clinton will deliver the keynote address and, aside from President Leonel Fernandez, other speakers will include Senator Joe Lieberman, James Wolfensohn (the president of the World Bank), and Dr John Deutch, the former director of the CEA.
See http://www.clintonpresidentialcenter.org/112304-nr-foundation-announces-energy-forum.htm
President Fernandez’s early December agenda also includes meetings at the New York Community College, after which he will join Prime Minister P J Patterson of Jamaica, Prime Minister Patrick Manning of Trinidad & Tobago, President Ricardo Maduro of Honduras, Prime Minister Gerard Latortue of Haiti, President Oscar Berger of Guatemala, President Antonio Saca of El Salvador and President Enrique Bolanos of Nicaragua in their participation in the CCAA’s 28th Annual Miami Conference on the Caribbean Basin scheduled for the InterContinental Hotel in Miami, Florida from 6-8 December. President Leonel Fernandez is scheduled to appear as the keynote speaker of the closing dinner on Wednesday, 8 December.
See http://www.c-caa.org/04conf_agenda.html
Fernandez is scheduled to return to Santo Domingo on 9 December.
On 15 December, the President’s office announced he will travel to El Salvador to participate in the Summit of Central American Presidents and the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic has a free trade agreement with Central America that has been very beneficial for Central American exports, not so for the DR. Likewise, the DR docked to the free trade agreement five Central American countries signed with the US. US press reports indicate that if the DR is excluded from the treaty, due to a recent duty imposed on corn syrup imports, the US Congress is unlikely to pass the Central American part of the treaty.