Excellences,
Esteemed colleagues,
It is an honor for Cuba to assume for the first time the Chairmanship of the G77 and China in New York. That is why for us it is a great responsibility and a challenge that we take on with all the relevant seriousness and commitment. In this regard, I reiterate my gratitude for the support and trust placed in Cuba.
I would like to acknowledge the excellent work carried out by Pakistan in 2022, which successfully led the Group through the processes that took place during that period.
We assume the chairmanship at a complex time, when our countries are facing the interrelated consequences of dissimilar crises. The issue of unpayable debt, food insecurity, the climate crisis, trade restrictive measures, unequal access to vaccines, the persistence of an unjust international financial architecture, just to mention a few, have not been resolved, further deepening the vulnerabilities of our countries and creating more obstacles to our development.
The diverse and important processes that we must face during the year 2023 will demand greater unity of purpose as a group, in order to secure the interests of the South in these processes. In the past, our group has been decisive in many negotiating processes and this one will be no exception. We will have the responsibility to turn our diversity and the specificities of our countries into our strength.
Today's meeting is an important opportunity to identify our priorities and develop an action plan for 2023.
I would like to hear your proposals and points of view, but first I would like to elaborate more on the actions and priorities that the Cuban Chairmanship of the G77 in 2023 will pursue and that our Foreign Minister advanced during his speech at the Handover Ceremony last 12 January:
1. To consolidate the unity, presence, influence and leadership of the Group in the manifold and relevant multilateral processes to be held in 2023, in particular: the SDG Summit, the preparatory ministerial meeting for the Summit of the Future, the COP 28 on climate change and the 3rd South Summit.
It is our intention to continue coordinating possible positions of the Group in the processes derived from the Secretary General's report "Our Common Agenda".
2. To foster international solidarity and cooperation to support the post-pandemic recovery of our nations.
3. To support the execution of cooperation projects from the South in the areas of health, biotechnology, education, climate change and disaster prevention. To strengthen the work of the Perez-Guerrero Fund, seeking to increase the donor base.
4. To promote the use of science, technology and innovation as driving forces of sustainable development. To create a common roadmap to face present and future challenges in this area.
5. To hold a Summit on science, technology and innovation as a premise for development and the confrontation of future pandemics, in Havana, Cuba, in September of this year. The event will seek:
- To take stock of the main challenges and potentials of the South in terms of science, technology and innovation in the post-Covid-19 context and in the face of future pandemics.
- To approve cooperation projects in the field of science and technology where the countries of the South have proven capacity.
-To hold a Southern Science, Technology and Innovation Fair to showcase the progress made by our countries in this area, promote joint research projects and foster productive linkages to reduce dependence on developed markets.
- To relaunch the Consortium on Science, Technology and Innovation for the South (COSTIS), created at the First South Summit in 2000.
- To adopt a final document that will become the roadmap for our nations in the promotion of science, technology and innovation as a driving force for sustainable development.
6. To strengthen a solid position of the Group for climate negotiations, in particular at COP 28, which will allow the operationalization of the rules of operation of the mechanism on loss and damage established at COP 27, as well as to advance the issues related to adaptation finance, the new global financial goal and the Global Goal on Adaptation.
7. To advocate for universal access to quality education and health to overcome structural challenges in the post-pandemic recovery context.
8. To consolidate a common position of the Group on the comprehensive reform of the international financial architecture, the treatment of foreign debt and the review of current approaches to access to concessional financing. To hold a meeting of G77 and China Finance Ministers to provide inputs in this regard.
9. To reinforce coordination among the G77 and China chapters from other multilateral venues in order to identify work priorities in view of the multiple negotiation processes in 2023.
10. To ensure the success of the 3rd South Summit, including the adoption of its outcome document that will set guidelines for the work of the Group in the coming years.
We count on the support of all the members of the Group to advance the interests of the South in the negotiating processes that will take place this year in the framework of the General Assembly and ECOSOC, as well as in the implementation of the actions we have proposed to develop in 2023.
Thank you.