Jamaica, 2009

I join other speakers in

congratulating Mr. Ali Abdussalam Treki on assuming

the presidency of the Assembly at its sixty-fourth

session. We are confident that his extensive diplomatic

experience will guide his leadership. He can be assured

of the support and cooperation of Jamaica during his

tenure.

I also extend Jamaica’s appreciation to Father

Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann for his energetic and

visible leadership during the sixty-third session of the

Assembly, and our gratitude to Secretary-General Ban

Ki-moon for his expert leadership of the Organization.

We meet at a critical juncture, as the world

confronts multiple crises: the global financial and

economic crisis and the food, energy and climate

crises, joined by the H1N1 pandemic. Both developed

and developing countries are affected by these crises. It

is the poorest and most vulnerable, however, that are

disproportionately affected and are least capable of

responding. Even as major economies are reporting

their emergence from the global recession, the outlook

for most developing countries remains bleak. For many

developing countries, there are no early signs of so-

called green shoots of economic recovery. For the

majority, the impact of the recession will be deep; it

will be prolonged; and it will be painful. The irony is

that developing countries are hapless victims of a crisis

for which they are inculpable.

The synchronized nature of the downturn in the

world economy means that its repercussions are

evident in virtually every sphere. Inflows of financing

and investment have plunged precipitously; exports are

weak, and commodity prices are low; official

development assistance has diminished drastically.

09-52592 18

Those consequences are reflected in Jamaica and

throughout the Caribbean Community (CARICOM)

region. Countries like ours now face the daunting

challenge of protecting the most vulnerable of their

citizens in a responsible and sustainable manner in the

context of declining export demand, contraction in

services, including tourism, and lower remittances. As

with most developing countries, the fiscal and financial

stress has forced us to make significant adjustments to

our expenditure programmes.

The distressing reality is that we in the

developing world have limited scope and capacity to

mitigate the impact of the crisis. We have neither the

fiscal flexibility nor the policy space to afford

ambitious stimulus packages to respond effectively to

the upheavals in our country.

A major corollary of the economic downturn is

the problem of debt servicing and debt sustainability.

Many developing countries could be on the verge of a

debt crisis, and require special support to help them

attenuate the impact of the global crisis.

Jamaica has always supported efforts to assist the

Heavily Indebted Poor Countries that have benefited

from debt relief initiatives. But there is another group

of developing countries that are equally burdened by

high debt and deserving of special consideration. I

speak of the heavily indebted lower-middle-income

countries, which are overlooked on the presumption

that, by virtue of their levels of gross domestic product

(GDP) per capita, they do not require international

assistance. That approach continues to mask the reality

of our vulnerability to external shocks, persistently

high levels of poverty and dependence on commodity

exports.

Jamaica is particularly concerned about the

situation of highly indebted middle-income countries,

which cannot benefit from the kind of assistance

available to the Least Developed Countries and

Heavily Indebted Poor Countries, but which have been

devastated by the impact of the global economic and

financial crisis. Jamaica is currently saddled with a

debt-to-GDP ratio of 125 per cent. Along with our

CARICOM partners, we will continue to advocate for a

very special category of small, vulnerable and highly

indebted middle-income countries. A review of the

criteria for determining middle-income status could

help to address financial resource accessibility in the

long term. We are lobbying for a review of those

criteria.

The pervasiveness of the crisis makes coordinated

international action imperative. Over the last two days

in Pittsburgh, leaders of the Group of 20 (G-20) met

for the third time in less than a year to review the

progress on commitments made at their last summit

and chart a course to counter the impact of the adverse

economic environment. As much as we value the

inclusion of advanced developing countries in the G-20

process, we believe that it is critical that space be made

to accommodate the voices of a wider cross-section of

developing countries, particularly the most vulnerable.

Our interest is in ensuring that the particular needs of

small, vulnerable economies and highly indebted

middle-income developing countries of the CARICOM

subregion are addressed through appropriate

representation at the summits of the G-20. We must

have an integrated approach in order to craft the type

of common strategy that a crisis of this magnitude

demands.

At the same time, the United Nations must play

an essential role in helping to manage the various

ramifications of the crisis. It can ensure dialogue and

enable a coordinated response based on an inclusive

decision-making process. The United Nations

Conference on the World Financial and Economic

Crisis and its Impact on Development, held in June,

provided a useful platform. Developing countries that

are not part of the G-20 group were able to bring their

concerns to the international community and contribute

to the search for solutions to the crisis.

We are encouraged by the candour of leaders

from the major industrialized countries who expressed

their commitment, with obvious sincerity, to effectively

addressing the concerns of developing countries in

order to help them cope with the crisis. We are seized

with a spirit of collectivity, and hope that this renewed

momentum will overcome all obstacles and translate

into tangible, targeted outcomes.

The severity and complexity of the crisis is

underpinned by the interlinked and interdependent

nature of the global financial system. The experience

of the current crisis supports the case for strengthening

financial regulation and supervision to address

systemic weaknesses in the global financial system.

Reform of the international financial architecture

is long overdue. Urgent steps must be taken to reform

19 09-52592

the governance structure of the international financial

institutions, including a review of the policy conditions

attached to lending by the International Monetary

Fund. We are disappointed that there is as yet no

visible action on reform of the international monetary

and financial systems.

Jamaica is a trade-dependent country. We

therefore agree that there is an urgent need to conclude

the Doha Round of negotiations in a bid to revive

global trade and to aid in global economic recovery.

Development must remain central to that agenda. Any

outcome of our negotiations in the Doha Development

Round must lead to clear benefits for our farmers,

producers, exporters and consumers. We must redouble

our efforts in this critical area and resolve to transform

international trade into an engine of growth.

Progress has been made in the implementation of

Aid for Trade for developing countries. We must build

on that progress. There are outstanding commitments

with respect to the provision of technical and financial

support to help strengthen the trading and production

capacities of developing countries. We look forward to

further collaboration with our international partners

and aid and development organizations in pushing the

Aid for Trade initiative to build on the supply-side

capacity and infrastructure of developing countries, so

that they can take advantage of trade opportunities and

connections with the global economy, particularly

against the backdrop of this global recession.

The threat posed by climate change must not be

underestimated. Urgent and effective global action on

climate change mitigation and adaptation is required to

avoid the catastrophic consequences of global

warming.

The Alliance of Small Island States Climate

Change Summit on 21 September, as well as the

Summit on Climate Change held here a few days ago,

reinforced this fact: the time for action is now. We

were heartened by the broad agreement that a

significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions is

necessary to reduce global warming. What is now

required is the necessary political will to take concrete,

decisive action so that we can address this clear and

present danger head on.

As a Small Island Developing State that is

vulnerable to the impact of climate change, Jamaica

has a vested interest in a successful outcome of the

United Nations Climate Change Conference in

Copenhagen in December — an outcome based on

equity and differentiated burden-sharing. It is now

clearly established that developed country emitters

have a historical responsibility for global warming and

that they should take the lead in reducing greenhouse

gas emissions.

Other major emitters also have a role to play in

climate change mitigation while taking into account

their own development needs. To this end, we favour

the conclusion of a post-Kyoto framework wherein the

commitments agreed to by all the parties hold to the

principle of common but differentiated responsibilities

and respective capabilities. A successful outcome must

also include concrete commitments on adaptation,

mitigation, capacity-building, technology transfers and

the provision of financial resources to assist

developing countries in addressing climate change.

We recognize that action at the international level

must be complemented by urgent action at the national

and regional levels. The necessary steps must be taken

to integrate climate change into broader national

sustainable development planning. Jamaica has

embraced this approach.

The pursuit of complete disarmament and nuclear

non-proliferation, with particular regard to weapons of

mass destruction, must remain a shared goal. The

2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Nuclear

Non-Proliferation Treaty provides an opportunity for

renewed commitment to strengthen the

non-proliferation regime.

Restoring peace and promoting regional stability

through peacekeeping operations is at the heart of the

contribution of the United Nations to international

peace and security. However, as we have seen,

peacekeeping interventions cannot by themselves

produce the desired outcome of sustainable peace. The

Peacebuilding Commission, established in 2006, can

assure such sustainability and make a difference in the

lives of people in post-conflict countries. We are

therefore pleased that new arrangements have been put

in place to make the Peacebuilding Fund more flexible

as we seek to support peace efforts in countries

emerging from conflict.

In my own region, Jamaica remains committed to

the long-term stability, socio-economic growth and

development of our sister country, Haiti. We recognize

the important role of the United Nations Stabilization

Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) in helping to foster the

09-52592 20

environment necessary to ensure a sustainable future

for the Haitian people.

We must increase our efforts to counter

transnational organized crime, narco-trafficking and

the illicit trade in small arms and ammunition, which

threaten the rule of law and democratic governance in

many countries, and fuel the spread of international

terrorism. At the regional level, through joint

collaboration and approaches within CARICOM, we

continue to tackle these security challenges, which

threaten the social and economic fabric of our

societies.

The challenges presented by the outbreak of

infectious diseases and the potential pandemics, such

as HIV/AIDS and the H1N1 flu, call for common

global strategies to ensure that developed and

developing countries alike can respond rapidly and

effectively. As a result of the global economic crisis,

accessibility and affordability of essential medicines

are expected to deteriorate in developing countries. In

this regard, however, it is anticipated that developing

countries will have access to the forthcoming H1N1

vaccine at an affordable price.

We end this first decade of the twenty-first

century confronted by myriad challenges. These

challenges are not constrained by borders and cannot

be confronted by States acting on their own. They can

only be confronted through international cooperation

and effective partnerships. But this can only be

achieved through greater multilateralism, with

equitable participation by all countries, both developed

and developing.

Jamaica firmly believes that the United Nations is

the only organization equipped to undertake this task

of inclusive multilateralism. With all its imperfections,

the United Nations still enjoys legitimacy in the eyes

of most people in the world. But the United Nations

cannot, in its current form and structure, successfully

tackle this task. It must be reformed to make it more

responsive to all its Members.

Multilateralism cannot work effectively if the

General Assembly, the most representative global body,

is unable to assert itself as the central decision-making

body of the Organization. Nor can it work if the

Security Council remains an exclusive club,

unrepresentative of the wider membership of the

United Nations. The goal of the intergovernmental

negotiations which commenced earlier this year should

be to come to a definitive conclusion on

comprehensive reform of the Council.

The theme that the President has chosen for this

session is both apt and timely. It evokes the purposes

and principles enshrined in the Charter. It calls on us to

reaffirm and renew our commitment to joint

responsibility for development, the realization of peace

and security and harmony among peoples. It is in this

spirit that we look forward to the erection of the

permanent memorial to honour the victims of the

transatlantic slave trade, which will remain an enduring

symbol of our collective resolve to eliminate

discrimination, social inequity and prejudice.

The United Nations must assert its unique

capability as the world’s premier multinational

organization to address the challenges and meet the

needs of the poor and most vulnerable. We need,

therefore, to urgently correct and reverse the tendency

towards inaction, inertia and indifference which has so

far frustrated efforts to address the development

agenda. This would be in keeping with the ideals of the

Charter and our shared vision for the fulfilment of the

hopes, aspirations and expectations of all our citizens

across the globe. We dare not fail to live up to those

expectations, as to do otherwise would seriously impair

the very credibility and relevance of the United

Nations, particularly during this time of crisis.