- Distinguished Heads of State and Governments
- UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres
- CARICOM Secretary General Ms Carla Barnett
- Ministers
- Members of the Diplomatic Corp
- Ladies and Gentlemen
Good Morning. Buenos Dias
Welcome to Belize
Bienvenidos a Belice.
We are honored to convene the Fourth CARICOM SICA Summit here in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye.
Bienvenidos a nuestros compañeros del SICA, que nos acompañan esta mañana.
Again, welcome to our CARICOM leaders, who have been here in conclave over the past two days.
Le doy las gracias a su Excelencia Carlos Alvarado Quesada por ser Copresidente de este cumbre.
We are also truly honoured to be joined virtually by H.E. Antonio Guterres, the Secretary General of the United Nations.
Your Excellency, we fully understand that the situation in Ukraine, which is worrying all of us, has prevented you from physically joining us in Belize as originally planned; still, we are grateful that you are able to engage us virtually.
The last time the Heads of the two subregions met in San Salvador was more than a decade ago.
Then Heads made a solid commitment to strengthen cooperation and engagement in areas of mutual interest that were integral to our development.
The fact is, our efforts have been less than satisfactory considering the common plight we faced, and the many opportunities for collaboration which we missed.
This must now change.
Clearly much has happened in the world since 2011.
The global and regional landscape has changed significantly.
Our partnership, therefore, must be strategic.
It must deliver more for the peoples of our shared neighbourhood.
As nations we are clawing our way back from a severe economic downturn occasioned by a devastating COVID 19 pandemic.
The pandemic exposed the fragility of the development gains many of our countries had made.
Too many of our citizens have been pushed into poverty, are facing hunger, or have lost their opportunity for an education.
Too many of our citizens have lost their lives or their livelihoods with implications for social cohesion.
Belize has had the privilege to participate in integration systems of both CARICOM and SICA.
Our dual membership has allowed us a unique vantage point from which we see two groups of developing countries co-existing in the middle of the Americas.
We know that CARICOM and SICA both share an abiding aspiration to achieve their sustainable development.
We know that countries of both subregions share a steadfast commitment to multilateralism.
We know that countries of both regions are dedicated to democratic governance, to the rule of law and respect for human rights.
We know also that both regions are facing similar challenges which threaten to retard our development.
Challenges such as human insecurity, climate change, migration and the COVID-19 pandemic are common throughout both CARICOM and Central American nations.
And we also know that both regions depend heavily on the multilateral system to deliver effective coordination and responses to the global challenges which are having impacts in our subregions.
Without question, the case for a closer partnership between CARICOM and SICA is compelling and urgent.
But achieving a functional partnership has so far eluded us.
We are equally aware that we live in a neighbourhood that is subject to tremendous influence in an era of heightened geopolitical competition.
Our shared historical experience teaches us that such geopolitical competition can yet again divide us and undermine our development.
This must not be allowed to happen.
Together we must navigate a path that is grounded in our shared values, promotes the common interests of our peoples, and operate strategically and independently on the world stage.
No puede ser que el idioma o la cultura, o nuestras diferentes etapas de desarrollo constituyan obstáculos para lograr una alianza más fuerte.
Seguramente no puede ser, ya que ambas subregiones han construido relaciones sólidas con otros países, organizaciones u agrupaciones, en lugares más lejanos, con los que no compartimos lenguas, culturas o sistemas de gobierno comunes.
Colegas, para construir la confianza mutua que es el componente esencial para cualquier alianza o asociación efectiva, necesitamos conocernos y entendernos mejor.
Y creo que Belice puede desempeñar un papel fundamental para facilitar esa entendimiento más profundo.
Creemos que tenemos el deber de hacerlo.
For example, it is important for Central America to understand what “vulnerability” means for the Caribbean.
For SIDS, our vulnerability arises from structural factors, including size, remoteness, limited resource base, market size, exposure to climate risks and natural disasters, which constrain our ability to achieve sustainable development.
Likewise, it is important for the Caribbean to understand the profound socio-economic impacts of climate change and natural disasters on Central American societies which already suffer deep inequalities — those impacts have included serious citizen insecurity and unprecedented migration flows.
Together, our subregions have a population of 60 million.
A collective GDP of nearly 400 billion.
The possibilities for intra-regional trade are clear.
The opportunities for cross-regional investments are obvious.
For sure, if we want it to be so, a common future awaits us.
Let us grasp it! Now! Today!
The longer we delay the effective activation of our partnership, we miss valuable opportunities to fully realize our development and to protect and enhance our shared neighbourhood.
Our Foreign Ministers have revised our CARICOM SICA Plan of Action, a coherent and achievable programme of work, to ensure that our cooperation is relevant to the current circumstances and contributes to our sustainable economic recovery.
Importantly, we have also agreed to a Follow Up Mechanism to ensure implementation and continuity.
Effectively implementing our agreed Plan of Action will build confidence and trust in our partnership.
Nuestro Plan de Acción debe ser un modelo de cooperación Sur-Sur entre grupos vecinos de países en desarrollo.
Of course, the scale of the crises we are facing — whether climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, migration, unsustainable debt loads, or transnational organized crime cannot be solved by either sub region – alone or together.
These challenges are global in scope but have serious regional ramifications for which we lack the resources and capacity to overcome.
Our subregions are heavily dependent on international cooperation and upon the multilateral system, at a time when global governance is under severe strain.
Our challenges are systemic and structural.
These challenges require urgent attention and solutions.
The international financial system, as presently operated, denies funding to the countries that need grants and concessional financing the most — counties like ours.
The G-20’s efforts to advance reform of the global financial system including the inevitable phasing out of fossil fuels has been lacklustre.
Developed countries have failed to provide sufficient climate finance to countries like ours that need it most.
Many of our countries struggled to access COVID-19 vaccines despite a plethora of pledges to make vaccines available.
Even in this state of fragmentation, there is no substitute for multilateralism, especially for nations like ours.
So we count on you Mr Secretary General, on your leadership to reform, renew and revitalize the UN system and wider multilateral system.
And I assure you, that you can count on our support for realizing Our Common Agenda.
Excelencias, señoras y señores, me complace mucho que hayamos convocado esta tan esperada Cuarta Cumbre de CARICOM y SICA.
Realmente creo que su presencia aquí demuestra su compromiso con una asociación CARICOM SICA fuerte y mutuamente beneficiosa.
I look forward to fruitful deliberation.
Muchas gracias.
