By Roy Lie Atjam
The Government of The Unitary Parliamentary Republic of Barbados has approved the establishment of the World’s First Metaverse Embassy. Establishing an embassy in the metaverse – a virtual world – is an innovative move and a world-first for a government.
The Government of Barbados will continue to establish and maintain physical embassies however will use the Metaverse Embassy as an opportunity to pioneer the evolution of global diplomacy beyond the physical world. Barbados is an active member of CARICOM.
Metaverse is a Virtual world !
Metaverse is a virtual-reality space where users can interact within a computer-generated environment with other users.
After speaking to the Barbados Government Special Envoy, H.E. Ambassador Gabriel Abed, he furnished me with the following information: “November 14, 2021 – On August 12 2021, the Government of Barbados’ Cabinet approved the establishment of the world’s first Metaverse Embassy.
Establishing an embassy in the metaverse – a virtual world – is an innovative move and a world-first for a government.
Barbados’ Metaverse Embassy will be at the centre of activities to advance the growth of stronger bilateral relationships with governments globally. It launches in the wake of Covid-19 disrupting traditional diplomatic channels, and at a time when Barbados is reimagining itself as a world hub for digital transformation and technology innovation.
The Government of Barbados is very pleased to announce the launch of its Metaverse Embassy initiative, said Senator Jerome Walcott, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade. This platform will be an important forum where Barbados will work with our traditional partners and new allies to deepen engagement in the diplomatic arena; the investment, business, tourism and cultural sectors; and people-to-people interaction. Barbados looks forward to welcoming the world in its Metaverse Embassy.
The Metaverse Embassy is being championed by Barbados’ Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, H.E. Gabriel Abed, who is also a world-renowned pioneer in the field of Central Bank Digital Currency and blockchain technology.
The Metaverse Embassy demonstrates Barbados’ leadership in pivoting diplomacy and international relations into the technology age. The Metaverse Embassy is the first phase of a multi-phased approach towards delivering digital solutions that evolve the way we interact with the world around us. This will be critical as Barbados fosters stronger relationships with technologically advanced nations, the Ambassador explained.
Although most details have not been revealed, the Ambassador did say that e-consular services will be a core feature alongside with a virtual teleporter which will be built in Barbados’ Metaverse Embassy connecting all meta-worlds as a gesture of diplomatic unification between technology platforms.
We believe it is critical to build teleporters as a common access point to all of the metaverses to foster meta-diplomacy, said Ambassador Abed.
We welcome the world’s diplomatic missions to join us in establishing their embassies in the metaverse. Barbados is proud to lend our technological assistance and knowhow to governments wanting to establish their own metaverse embassy, said Minister Walcott.” The Barbados Meta Embassy is officially still to be launched.
According to Mr Mark Zuckerberg, Meta CEO, the metaverse will be mainstream 5–10 years from now.
Barbados, fondly Known as Land of The Flying Fish, takes to the Metaverse!
