Ambassador George Talbot, Guyana’s Perma-nent Representative to the United Nations said Caricom continues to support Africa’s efforts to enhance governance, in his address given on behalf of the Caribbean Community, at the United Nations Headquarters on Friday.
The ambassador noted that the debate on the ‘New Partnership for Africa’s Development: progress in implementation and international support; and on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa’ was “taking place against the backdrop of an unprecedented Ebola epidemic that is currently ravaging countries in West Africa”, threatening “to reverse peacebuilding and development gains on the Continent and poses serious risks on a more global scale.”
Caricom stands in solidarity with the affected countries, most notably Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone and with the entire Continent, he said, even as it calls for “a massively scaled up and multipronged global response in order to turn the tide of the disease, strengthen health systems as a matter of priority, and to undo any adverse impacts on peace and development,” according to a statement from the Caricom Secretariat.
“Caricom continues to support Africa’s quest to improve governance and accountability, reflecting our shared commitments in that regard,” Talbot said. He further noted that increasing subscription by African countries to the processes of the African Peer Review Mechanism is a testament to the efficacy of this instrument in promoting good governance on the continent. The Region also shares Africa’s commitment to expanding the role of women and youth in the promotion of durable peace and socio-economic transformation.
The ambassador noted that the burden of diseases like malaria and HIV/AIDS continues to threaten health and wellbeing in Africa and, the latter, in the Caribbean. In May, Caricom teamed-up with the African Union to explore the role of shared responsibility and the global solidarity agenda in ending the AIDS epidemic in the Caribbean, drawing on the lessons from the 2012 AU Roadmap on Shared Responsibility and Global Solidarity for AIDS, TB and Malaria Response in Africa.
This process facilitated further links between the countries of both regions regarding their HIV and health responses. The mutual threat posed by non-communicable diseases in the two regions is another area of common concern and collaboration.
Caricom hopes that the stability being experienced by most African countries will be sustained and that setbacks to peace and security will be overcome. The Region supports the United Nations and African Union (AU) efforts in conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peacebuilding, which are critical to the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development.
