Speaker Program Latin America & Caribbean Luncheon Group
Event Description
The DACOR/ LAC Discussion Group lunch event with the new Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), the Hon. Albert Ramdin, has been re-scheduled again for Friday, October 10.
Please note this is a hybrid event - you have the option to attend in person or virtually. Registrations are required for all attendees. For in-person attendees, the event will run from 11:45 am - 2 pm and will include lunch. The live stream will begin at 12:50 pm (virtual attendees will be sent a link for the event via email).
Join the Latin American and Caribbean Luncheon Group at DACOR to welcome the new Secretary General of the Organization for American States, Albert R. Ramdin, who will share his priorities and discuss the critical issues that the OAS will need to address during his 5-year term. Former US ambassadors to the OAS John Maisto, Roger Noriega and Frank Mora, who served under different US presidential administrations, will provide their insights based on their OAS experience immediately after the SG’s presentation..
Albert R. Ramdin was elected Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS) in March 2025. His election marked a historic milestone, as he became the first Secretary General in the history of the OAS from a Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member state. His five-year term began on May 26, 2025.
A staunch advocate for multilateralism and principled diplomacy, Mr. Ramdin brings to the role more than three decades of service in high-level positions, including as Assistant Secretary General of the OAS from 2005 to 2015, during which time he played a key role in advancing dialogue, conflict resolution, and hemispheric cooperation. In 2020, he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Business, and International Cooperation of Suriname, a position he held until his election as Secretary General. In that role, he deepened Suriname’s engagement with regional and global partners and promoted policies for sustainable development and democratic strengthening.
Earlier in his career, Mr. Ramdin held senior positions at CARICOM, including as Assistant Secretary General for External Relations, and served as Suriname’s Permanent Representative to the OAS. He was born in Suriname in 1958. He holds a BSc in Human Geography from the University of Amsterdam and an MSc in Development Geography from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. He is fluent in Dutch, English, and Spanish.
John F. Maisto, Ambassador (ret.) is a thirty-eight year former career member of the U.S. Foreign Service. He was Ambassador to Nicaragua (1993-96), Venezuela (1997-2000), and the Organization of American States (2003-2006). He was Senior Director for the Western Hemisphere at the National Security Council and, concurrently, Special Assistant to the President, 2001-2003. He was Foreign Affairs Adviser at U.S. Southern Command, 2000-2001. He served at the State Department as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Central America, 1992-93, and Deputy U.S. Permanent Representative at the U.S. Mission to the OAS, 1989-92. He was deputy Chief of Mission in Panama, 1986-89, in the build-up to the transition to an elected government. Previously, at the State Department he was Deputy Director and then Director of Philippine Affairs, 1982-1986, during the People Power transition to democracy. His additional assignments included Argentina, Bolivia, Costa Rica, and the Philippines.
He currently is a Director of the Miami-based U.S. Education Finance Group. He also serves as a Director of ECI, a Central America-based resort and retirement company, and Senior Consultant on International Development at Arizona State University. Since 2012, he has been President of the Washington-based US-Philippines Society. He writes and speaks on U.S. foreign policy; trade, investment and growth; democratic transitions; Western Hemisphere and East Asia-Pacific regional issues; security and defense matters; and international education.
Ambassador (Ret.) Roger F. Noriega has more than three decades of public policy experience focusing on U.S. interests in the Western Hemisphere. After a 10-year career on Capitol Hill, he was appointed by President George W. Bush (and confirmed by the Senate) to senior State Department posts. Ambassador Noriega’s breadth and depth of experience and contacts offer strategic vision and practical insight for clients with interests in the Americas. He is the founder and managing director of the consultant firm, Vision Americas LLC, which has teams in Washington and Bogotá.
As Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs (2003 to 2005), Noriega managed a 3,000-person team in Washington and 50 diplomatic posts to design and implement political and economic strategies in Canada, Latin America, and the Caribbean. He also helped design and execute an annual plan for the effective use of $1.7 billion in U.S. economic assistance in two-dozen countries.
As U.S. Ambassador to the Organization of American States (August 2001 to July 2003), Noriega coordinated complex and sensitive multilateral diplomacy in a 34-member international organization to bolster trade, fight illicit drugs, and defend democracy. Noriega served as a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research from 2005-2020. Noriega is a frequent commentator in U.S. and international publications and broadcasts.
Frank O. Mora is the former Director of the Kimberly Green Latin American and Caribbean Center (LACC) and Professor of Politics and International Relations at Florida International University (FIU), Miami, FL. Prior to arriving at FIU, Dr. Mora served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Western Hemisphere from 2009-2013. He has held several teaching positions, including Professor of National Security Strategy and Latin American Studies at the National War College, National Defense University (2004-2009) and Associate Professor and Chair in the Department of International Studies, Rhodes College (2000-2004).
During the last twenty years, Dr. Mora has worked as a consultant to the Library of Congress, the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), the National Democratic Institute, the U.S. State Department, the Organization of American States, and U.S. Southern Command. He has spoken at numerous conferences in the United States, Latin America and Europe. His opinion pieces and other commentaries have appeared in US and Latin American media outlets.
Location
Setting: Hybrid DACOR Bacon House OR Online 1801 F Street, NW Washington, DC 20006 UNITED STATES
