It is my honour, in this, my second year as the Prime Minister of Saint Kitts and Nevis, to join with members of the global family of nations and speak on behalf of the people of Saint Kitts and Nevis, at home and in the diaspora.
However. I must first extend condolences across the world to people, who in a summer of scorching heat — the hottest in recorded human history — suffered every disaster known to humankind: fires, floods, droughts, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes and. with
them, untold personal, social and economic tragedies. I especially express the heartfelt pain of the people of Saint Kitts and Nevis with regard to the recent disasters in Libya and Morocco. We. in Saint Kitts and Nevis, are suffering the worst drought of our history, resulting in severe water shortage. Of course, we too have not escaped unscathed.
I extend my sincere congratulations to you. Sir. on your election to preside over the General Assembly during its seventy-eighth session. Your election has given pride and satisfaction to Saint Kitts and Nevis and indeed the Caribbean Community, and it stands as further testimony to the fact that small island developing States (SIDS) can contribute to positions of global leadership. Your term comes at a time of international complexity and conflict, of great global tensions and even greater global aspirations, and of new geopolitical dynamics and even newer technologies, which are transforming every aspect of life as we know it. These are times of great divides in income and wellbeing. combined with such growing insularity and loss of trust that they shout the need for what Secretary- General Guterres has rightly identified as the centrality of prevention, coordination and partnership. Saint Kitts and Nevis shares the view that this must be a period in which we work to prevent an enormous downward slide socially, economically, environmentally and with regard to security for the people of the world.
There is an alarming lack of trust the world over — a lack of trust in State and global organizations, of trust in the traditional media and what some regard as its management and manipulation of information, and of trust in the political class. In a world of distrust, the United Nations and its Member States must show a sense of caring, inclusion and respect for the dignity of all to ensure that “We the peoples” is a statement of unity, and a clarion call for the word “common” to be truly reflected in how we view the global commons and how we work together to achieve the agenda for the common good. If we are to rebuild trust and reignite global solidarity, leaders, particularly those in wealthier countries, must mean what they say and say what they mean. Developing countries are groaning under the weight of burgeoning challenges not of their own making, and I daresay some of which were inherited as a result of colonization and the transatlantic slave trade. Millions of Africans were uprooted from their homelands and transported across the Atlantic in the hulls of ships to be enslaved on plantations. That was the largest forced migration in human history, and it resulted in great wealth for some at the expense of the lives and dehumanization of African peoples.
It must be noted that compensation was paid to plantation owners, while the survivors of that crime against humanity were left in suffering and were hindered in their socioeconomic development. It is therefore past time for reparatory justice, and I encourage all to work together constructively as partners in the pursuit of justice and of respect for justice. For. as Martin Luther King. Jr., said. “[T]he arc of the moral universe is long but it bends towards justice”.
We must maintain our focus on the climate challenge. The behemoth industrial countries and companies are pushing small island developing States (SIDS) and others onto the front lines of climate change. They accept little responsibility for financing the adaptation and mitigation measures necessary to the survival of developing countries, which suffer the consequences of the lifestyles and industries of others. As a result, countries like mine, which are unable to access concessionary funding, are forced to fix the climate crisis by obtaining loans at exorbitant rates from the very countries where the problem originated. Our carbon footprint, as a country, is very small, and yet we are facing the existential threat of climate change. That is unjust. We therefore call for climate justice.
There is an urgent need for the international community to address the gaps and shortfalls of the current international financial architecture with a view to strengthening support for SIDS, in particular through a multilateral sovereign debt mechanism, meaningful reform of the governance of the international financial institutions and enhanced access to financial resources. I congratulate the World Bank on its recent steps in the right direction. However, there is still much ground to cover if States like mine are not to fail and our economies and societies are to remain viable. I commend the Bridgetown Initiative of my sister Prime Minister Mia Mottley. as having the potential to effect the kind of changes that are essential to ensuring equitable growth and sustainable development. I see as an outcome to addressing the issue of access to capital the development of a relevant and effective multidimensional vulnerability index. I would like to caution, however, that to be effective, debt must be part of the metrics used for the assessment and ranking of countries. Furthermore, the risk and cost of wipe-out environmental events, in which a single event or series of events literally wipes out 5 per cent or more of gross
domestic product, as well as the capacity to recover from such events, are all important metrics if such an index is to work.
At the national level, our Government has commenced efforts to further ensure the holistic and resilient development of our communities. That undertaking is articulated in our vision for transforming our country into a sustainable island State by 2040. and demonstrates the determination with which we take ownership of our own destiny and pursue our sustainable development aspirations. Our vision is buttressed by seven pillars — food security, a green energy transition, economic diversification, sustainable industries, the orange economy, coronavirus disease recovery and social protection. Those overarching areas include environmental sustainability, sustainable lives and livelihoods, health and wellness and fiscal and debt resilience. To that end. we have made strides towards geothermal energy production and have utilized loans from the Caribbean Development Bank for that national development project, together with the collaboration of groups such as the Atlantic Council and the United States-Caribbean Partnership to Address the Climate Crisis. We have strengthened our healthcare delivery and management. We have learned the lessons of the pandemic and are now better prepared for crises in health, although the work continues. We are also building more transparent and participatory governance structures, as demonstrated by our enactment of legislation on integrity in public life and good governance. We have developed programmes for the most vulnerable and marginalized, specifically women, young people, the elderly, the disabled and the Rastafari community. We want to ensure that Saint Kitts and Nevis leaves no one behind.
We aspire to create a society where our people can live in safety and security. However, we are plagued by the scourge that is the proliferation of illicit and untraceable weapons flowing into our region. The States that manufacture those weapons must take greater responsibility for combating those illegal flows, which can threaten our national and regional security and have devastating socioeconomic consequences. We cannot win the fight against the guns on our own. International cooperation is necessary if we are to ensure the protection of our societies and our people. To that end. we thank the United States for increasing its collaboration with the region, and with my own country, in order to deal with the illicit trans-shipment of guns and buttress our overall national security apparatus. We must continue to work together to ensure continued success in that regard.
It is a matter of great concern that glaring global inequities persist and are growing wider, despite sustained calls for global solidarity, action and cooperation. For example. Venezuela has been placed in a precarious situation as a result of the application of sanctions, and its people continue to bear the brunt of those unilateral measures. We therefore urge strongly for constructive dialogue between the Governments of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the United States to relieve the hardships that those impositions have caused the Venezuelan people. It should also be noted that while others benefit from access to Venezuela’s natural resources, its Caribbean neighbours are denied as a result of the sanctions.
Continuing on the subject of inequities and the need for respect for sovereign States. Cuba, which has been a generous global partner, is caught in the clutches of an unjust and continuing economic, commercial and financial embargo that has caused suffering to a people who do not deserve it. The people of Saint Kitts and Nevis stand in solidarity with the Government and the people of Cuba and call for an immediate end to the embargo and for Cuba’s removal from the unilateral list of State sponsors of terrorism.
Speaking to the issue of Governments and peoples excluded from full participation within the United Nations and the global multilateral systems. I would like to point to the situation of Taiwan, which has proved to be a reliable development partner that greatly contributes to collective efforts to address the pressing global issues of today. It is our firm belief that Taiwan should be able to make its contribution to the work and budget of multilateral institutions such as the United Nations and the World Health Assembly in furtherance of the common global goals. It is our hope that the right of its 23 million people to adequate representation can be realized. Beyond that, we urge for peace in that region of the world, as war would have severe consequences for all of us.
Closer to home, the ongoing dire situation in our sister nation of Haiti demands the sustained attention and support of the international community. Haiti, the first Black Republic in the Western hemisphere, continues to grapple with an unimaginable scale of human suffering. A political resolution is urgently needed, along with recognition that appropriate measures must be taken to reverse Haiti’s legacy of underdevelopment. We cannot move forward with the acceleration of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development if we continue to knowingly and deliberately leave some people behind.
We are living in a world in flux, where new and emerging poles and spheres of influence are challenging the existing so-called rules-based order. New currencies are being internationalized, new trade routes are taking shape and new security, political and economic blocs are emerging to drive geopolitical advantage. The voice of the Global South is growing bolder, with increasingly louder rumblings among powerful blocs calling for change. The need for an enhanced role and presence of developing countries from the Global South within the Security Council could not be more compelling. We are convinced that in the face of those complex changes, reform of the Security Council is needed to better reflect contemporary geopolitical realities and enhance its effectiveness.
In conclusion, that reform is critical. Let us consider a reset. On the heels of the fortieth anniversary of my country’s independence, we declare that there should be a reset. We can consider it here, for it gives us the opportunity to establish an improved path to what we seek to achieve as an Assembly. Today, at a time that is as challenging as it is exciting, we stand at the juncture of what is and what could be. We know what is. and we understand what could be. Ours is a challenge to ensure peace, prosperity, progress and sustainability for all. Saint Kitts and Nevis accepts that challenge and remains a ready and willing partner in our collective quest for a better world that we all deserve.