On Friday, Aug 13 the Perry Center completed its Caribbean Defense and Security Course (CDSC) 2021. The more than 40 participants represented 13 countries. Forty percent of the audience were females who work on security and defense matters their countries.

The 5-day online course – conducted virtually because of the COVID-19 pandemic – touched on a number of important security matters to include the COVID-19 pandemic, human trafficking, cyber security, climate change, natural disasters, and illegal fishing. The participants also received presentations on the Caribbean Regional Security System (RSS) and the CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS).

Brigadier General (ret.) Anthony Phillips-Spencer, Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago to the United States, provided closing remarks for the course on Friday and encouraged each of the participants to take the initiative on the many security problems Caribbean nations face. He challenged members of the audience to be the next visionary thinker, one who could help resolve the many social, political, and economic issues that Caribbean nations will face in the foreseeable future.

CDSC 2021 was the first Caribbean security course hosted by the Perry Center since 2017. A course scheduled for 2020 was cancelled because of the global pandemic.