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Hyatt Regency Trinidad hosts Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting

21st December 2009 Print
Fifty-plus flags of the Commonwealth countries fly high at the Hyatt Regency Trinidad

Hyatt Regency Trinidad, for the second time this year, hosted a conference of world leaders and was honoured to welcome Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the Commonwealth Heads of Government during their biennial meeting held from 27-29 November.

Key attendees included Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Gordon Brown, Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada, President of South Africa, Jacob Zuma, India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, New Zealand’s Prime Minister John Key, Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Loong and Michael Somare Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea.

In addition to 51 leaders of the Commonwealth, the hotel also welcomed non-Commonwealth members Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General of the United Nations, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen, all of whom were specially invited for the first time as guests to address the issue of climate change ahead of the Climate Change Conference in Denmark.

“After the successful Summit of the Americas earlier this year, the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) marks the second major conference of world leaders we have hosted in 2009,” said General Manager Russell George. “Whether large or small, our venue is designed for meetings and conferences of all sizes and we have proven that Hyatt Regency Trinidad is the place ‘where the world meets’.”

The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting convened last Friday with representatives from 51 countries present. The hotel welcomed Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II later that evening for a special dinner Her Majesty hosted for the Commonwealth Leaders and their spouses. After bidding farewell to its Commonwealth guests, the hotel is welcoming new guests and is in the midst of preparations to accommodate and host many upcoming groups and functions for the Christmas season.

CHOGM is convened every two years to review global, political and economic developments and to conduct a strategic overview of the Commonwealth's work in support of the interests of member countries. The objective of this summit is to engage leaders of the Commonwealth in discussing global and Commonwealth issues and to agree upon collective policies and initiatives. All nations, regardless of size, have an equal say and vote at this meeting and all CHOGM decisions and initiatives are reached only by consensus.

For more information about meetings and conventions or reservations at the Hyatt Regency Trinidad in the heart of downtown Port of Spain, visit trinidad.hyatt.com.

More Photos - Click to Enlarge

Fifty-plus flags of the Commonwealth countries fly high at the Hyatt Regency Trinidad