2004 March 11

2004 March 11.

Dear Colleague,

ONE-DAY WORKSHOP ON BUILDING CAPACITY OF CIVIL SOCIETY TO ADDRESS THE FTAA, WTO

We are pleased to invite your organization to participate in a One-Day Workshop on Building Capacity of Civil Society around the FTAA and WTO. The Workshop will be held on Thursday March 18^th, 2004 at the OWTU Headquarters, Paramount Building, San Fernando. Starting time is 8:45 am.

The objectives of the Workshop are:

To deepen the specialist knowledge of civil society organizations on the FTAA and WTO
To strategise on the building of campaigns by civil society on free trade issues

The Workshop will feature a Major Panel presentation with a number of experts providing an update on the status of the FTAA and WTO and implications for Trinidad and Tobago and Caricom. The Workshop will the be facilitated by Ms. Lori Wallach, Director of Global Trade Watch a Washington, D.C. NGO that has been involved in research, public policy development and advocacy and civil society campaigns around free trade (see attached).

Ms. Wallach will facilitate two sessions, one on strategizing on building civil society campaigns around free trade and the other on those proposals that pose the greatest threat to our economic and social development. One of the outcomes which we hope will emerge from the Workshop is consensus on the establishment of a National Civil Society Committee on Trade Issues. We will also be advising on the substantial progress towards the setting up of a specialist Trade Research Unit for civil society.

There is a twenty-five dollar registration fee per participant for the Workshop, which includes the cost of lunch and coffee-breaks. Your organization can send a number of participants, however, you are requested to kindly return the attached Registration Form to us by the morning of Wednesday 17^th so that the necessary catering arrangements may be made.

We look forward to your participation in this very important Workshop.

Yours truly,

David Abdulah

Interim President