The siege by the United States and the inclusion on the list drawn up by Washington of countries allegedly supporting terrorism represent Cuba’s main challenge in financing the 2030 Agenda, the representative assured in statements to Prensa Latina.
“It requires intensive work to ensure that the country’s achievements – benchmarks in the Latin American region in areas such as health and education – are maintained and their quality is not undermined,” he stressed.
While in most countries there is talk of getting the Sustainable Development Goals back on track, in Cuba there is an insistence on not losing what has been achieved, he added
Pichón attended the meeting of the United Nations system’s resident coordinators in New York this week, focusing on addressing the main themes of the work of its offices in more than 100 countries, in the middle of the path outlined for the 2030 Agenda.
The meetings opened debates in areas such as food systems, energy, digital connectivity, education, jobs and social protection, and climate-related challenges.
The SDG Summit, held in September during the high-level week of the General Assembly, confirmed the commitment of member states and the organization itself to achieve these goals in areas such as nutrition, education, renewable energy or the crisis climate.
However, the United Nations’ support for the largest of the Antilles on this journey faces its own challenges, such as accessing financing – be it credit or loans -, finding suppliers or providing assistance in emergencies.
In this sense, the highest representative of the United Nations in Cuba recognized the need to more strongly address the obstacles facing economically blocked nations in discussions as important as financing for development.
“The Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, has talked about reforming the international financial system for countries with high debts, but we are talking about excluding Cuba from this system, imperfect as it is,” he admitted.
However, there is a strong commitment within the UN system in Cuba and the 22 organizations that make it up to find solutions and ways of working that work in these circumstances.
“We face the great challenge of not leaving the country without options; “Cuba remains true to the 2030 Agenda and is doing what it can and more with its public resources,” he emphasized.
External sanctions and the involvement of countries that support terrorism impose enormous restrictions on the Caribbean country in terms of its partners in support of the 2030 Agenda.
However, the island has the support of the European Union, Canada, Switzerland, Spain and other non-traditional donor countries such as Vietnam, China or Kuwait, ready to do more in terms of South-South cooperation and the cooperation framework between Havana and the United Nations system.
Pichón recalled that the country has drawn up a roadmap aligned with the UN goals called “National Economic and Social Development Plan 2030” and this year strengthened its commitment to multilateralism at the forefront of the G77 and China.
This bloc served as a platform for the UN chief to reaffirm the support of the countries of the South on such an important issue as the reform of the international financial system.
“We have the energy to respond and find a way forward,” said the resident coordinator, citing important areas of joint work such as new forms of economic governance, responding to natural disasters or social protection focused on vulnerable groups.
“Cuba strongly supports the United Nations and the 2030 Agenda, but also needs a lot of help with specific mechanisms that operate in countries under sanctions,” the representative stressed.
jha/ebr