Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration (MFAI) Foreign Service Officer Maya Solomon recently returned to headquarters in Rarotonga following two and a half weeks in New Delhi, India, where she completed the Professional Course for Foreign Diplomats (PCFD).
The PCFD is supported by the Government of India and delivered by the Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Service and was held from 13 March – 1 April, with this being the 70th iteration of the PCFD that saw 52 participants from countries all around the world.
"The resumption of international travel and travel duty has once more availed in-person capability development opportunities such as the PCFD, and MFAI are grateful to the Government of India for this opportunity which has provided capability development opportunities for our diplomats and just as valuable, in-person networking opportunities with counterparts in India and across the world who participate in these programs," said MFAI Director of Capability and Service Delivery (CSD), Amelia Fukofuka-Murare.
The Cook Islands and India established diplomatic relations in 1998, and beyond the PCFD, the two governments together with the University of the South Pacific (USP), collaborated to establish the Centre of Excellence in Information Technology (CEIT) in 2018. CEIT continues to offer specialised training programmes in the field of Information Communications Technology delivered through USP Rarotonga campus.
Ms Solomon joined MFAI in 2018, initially as an Immigration Officer, before progressing on to Immigration data analysis. Following a stint within the CSD division, Maya is now employed within the Foreign Service team within the Treaties, Multilateral, and Oceans Division.
The PCFD comprised 39 lectures on India-specific topics, diplomacy, and international issues, with participants also undertaking institutional visits to Delhi's State Election Commission, National Museum, government-established market Dilli Haat, the official residence of the President of India, as well as The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) with a study tour to the city of Agra.
Lectures were delivered by a mix of current and former diplomats, academics and other experts in their field who discussed their experiences, knowledge, and opinions, as well as prepared scenarios and learning activities for the participants to delve into each topic. The course concluded with joint country presentations from regional groupings, who shared presentations educating one another on relevant issues to each country, including culture, trade, and climate change.
"It was an incredible experience to learn about different diplomatic practices from such a dynamic nation and from other countries who had participants in the course," said Ms Solomon.
"It was also empowering to see so many women across the globe taking on important roles in diplomacy, and I'm looking forward to applying what I've learned to my future work".
The PCFD is timely given the Leader level India – Pacific Islands Co-operation Summit to convene in Papua New Guinea in May.
MFAI are presently engaged with the Governments of India and Papua New Guinea towards preparations of the Summit.