Grenada, 2002

My delegation

congratulates Mr. Jan Kavan on his election as

President of the fifty-seventh session of the General

Assembly, and we thank his predecessor, Mr. Han

Seung-soo, for his effective conduct of the fifty-sixth

session. We also pay tribute to the Secretary-General

for his enlightened and progressive leadership.

In addition, we warmly welcome Switzerland into

the family of nations, and we look forward with

pleasure to the admission of East Timor.

When the fifty-sixth session of the General

Assembly was convened a year ago, shockwaves were

reverberating across the United States and around the

world as a result of the traumatic and cataclysmic

events of 11 September. My country's thoughts and

prayers continue to be with the people of the United

States, especially those who have suffered irreparable

loss. As the curtain rises on the fifty-seventh session of

the General Assembly, there is evidence that some dark

clouds have lifted, thanks to the solidarity of the

international community, which has galvanized into

taking action to prevent such dastardly and heinous

terrorist attacks.

Nevertheless, there is a need for vigilance, as

demonstrated by the Counter-Terrorism Committee

created to oversee the implementation of the landmark

Security Council resolution 1373 (2001). Grenada has

given its full support and commitment to this resolution

by using scarce financial and human resources to

implement security measures and new counter-

terrorism strategies, including national legislation to

conform with the resolution.

In this connection, we appeal for assistance from

willing partners in the fight against terrorism and the

concomitant trade in narcotic drugs and psychotropic

substances that traverses our region via the Caribbean

Sea. This waterway must be maintained as a zone of

peace in the context of sustainable development, free

also from pollutants and nuclear waste.

The general debate is taking place in the

continuing shadow of 11 September, which has

adversely affected the global economy and the social

situation in developed countries. However, the

spillovers have affected, much more profoundly, small

developing countries such as my own. Particularly

hard-hit has been the tourism industry, which is a major

source of foreign exchange. Tourist arrivals by air and

sea have decreased significantly, due in large measure

to increased security arrangements introduced in

international transportation and, of course, the natural

fear of travelling. Loss of revenue in tourism affects

the hotel industry, employment, transportation,

banking, agriculture and other tourism activities that

help to sustain the economy of my country.

The next hardest hit sector is trade. Conventional

economic wisdom says that poor developing countries

must grow their way out of poverty. Trade offers the

best hope, because it is the engine of growth and

development.

Many products from developing countries face

untold obstacles in entering the markets of the rich

developed countries. In this connection, the decline in

trade, especially primary commodities, has a direct

relation on developing countries' ability to import

goods essential for development. According to the

Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund

(IMF), Mr. Horst Köhler, the true test of the credibility

of wealthy nations' efforts to combat poverty lies in

their willingness to open up their markets and phase

out trade-distorting subsidies in areas where

developing countries have a comparative advantage, as

in agriculture, processed foods, textiles, clothing and

light manufactures.

Grenada fully understands the critical role that

international trade plays in the alleviation of poverty.

However, improved market access is a necessity for the

development of smaller nations. We, therefore, reiterate

our call to the more developed nations to make a

concerted effort to reduce trade barriers and tariffs,

which impede poorer developing countries from full

participation in the global economy.

One result of 11 September has been to further

exacerbate the inequality between the developing and

the developed countries as trading partners in the free

play of market forces. According to the Secretary-

General of the United Nations Conference on Trade

and Development (UNCTAD), the challenge now is to

make the multilateral trading system more

development-friendly.

Now, more than ever, the concerns of developing

countries, enunciated at the third session of the World

Trade Organization (WTO) in Seattle and emphasized

at the Fourth World Trade Organization Ministerial

Conference in Doha, should be the global agenda to

fight poverty in developing countries. The Doha

ministerial declaration, adopted in November of 2001,

reaffirmed the need for special and differential

treatment as stated in that paragraph 3 declaration:

“We recognize the particular vulnerability of the

least developed countries ... we are committed ...

to improving their effective participation in the

multilateral trading system.” (TRADE/2002/1,

pp. 9-10)

In Grenada, our imports declined by 10.9 per cent

in 2001, following a 20 per cent increase just the year

before. Our exports performed even worse by

registering a 24 per cent decline in 2001, as compared

to a 13 per cent increase the previous year. The effect

on our growth rate was not surprising. The economy

grew by 3.4 per cent in 2001, compared to 6.6 per cent

in the year 2000.

The HIV/AIDS pandemic casts a dark shadow

over the General Assembly's global agenda. HIV/AIDS

has become not only a health pandemic, but also a

threat to the development of international peace and

security. This disease constitutes a global emergency,

as it affects every country of the world; not a single

one is immune. The Pan American Health Organization

has reported that an estimated 2.8 million people in the

Americas are currently living with AIDS. Out of that

number, 420,000 in the Caribbean are infected. The

Caribbean is second only to sub-Saharan Africa in

incidence and mortality rates.

HIV/AIDS poses a drain on the scarce resources

of the small economies, like Grenada's, whose

revenues have been further negatively impacted by last

year's horrific events. The Caribbean is facing a

serious problem with the disease, and there is no way

that our small countries can stem the ravages of

HIV/AIDS without a massive infusion of resources.

The Caribbean urgently needs financial and

human resources for education and counselling in

preventative measures and treatment, with respect to

HIV/AIDS and the opportunistic diseases, such as

tuberculosis and others. Moreover, the availability of

medicine and the ability to purchase it constitute the

greatest challenge.

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We applaud the establishment in 2002 of the

Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

We are also thankful to the Pan American Health

Organization and the World Health Organization

(WHO) representative offices for assistance in the

facilitation, implementation and technical evaluation of

many projects in the Caribbean region. However, there

is much more to be done, and the costs are

overwhelming.

The World Summit on Sustainable Development,

recently ended in Johannesburg, and its precursor, the

International Conference on Financing for

Development, held in Monterrey, and the conclusions

of the Millennium Summit are all blueprints for

sustainable development. The common thread in all the

final documents is poverty eradication. Poverty, hunger

and disease constitute a chain of misery with

devastating physical, mental and psychological

consequences.

The Secretary-General summarized the nature of

the challenges to human development best in the

introduction of his report to the Preparatory Committee

for the High-level International Intergovernmental

Event on Financing for Development:

“As the new century dawns, there can be no task

more urgent for the United Nations than that

fixed by the Millennium Summit of rescuing one

billion men, women and children from ‘abject and

dehumanizing poverty'”. (A/AC.257/12, para.1)

Grenada's stated position at the World Summit on

Sustainable Development is as follows: if sustainable

development is to become a reality, our focus must be

on the health and social well-being of the world's

peoples. Clean water, unpolluted air and food security

are rights, not privileges.

What is required now is not the elaboration of

further final documents, replete with grand phraseology

and pious pronouncements, but the implementation of

the existing ones that are most appropriate to the

human condition. This brings to mind the need to

implement the Barbados Programme of Action for the

Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing

States (SIDS) embodied in Agenda 21.

We are hopeful that there will be a comprehensive

review of the Barbados Plan of Action in 2004 in

Mauritius so that the difficulties that small islands face

in the pursuit of sustainable development will be

considerably reduced.

As a matter of urgency, the United Nations, its

agencies and willing stakeholders and partners should

seek to implement the first Millennium Goal: the

eradication of extreme poverty and hunger by 2015.

Grenada awaits the time when the United Nations

will include the Republic of China on Taiwan in its

membership. The Government of Grenada has close

and collaborative ties with the Republic of China and

has witnessed its economic achievements, seen

demonstrations of its democratic principles, and is

cognizant of the dedication of its people to

international norms and ideals. In this spirit Grenada

calls for the full membership of the Republic of China

on Taiwan in the United Nations. We are convinced

that the Republic of China on Taiwan meets the

standards for United Nations membership, since it has

a democratic Government and possesses the attributes

of a nation-State. Indeed, the Republic of China on

Taiwan has tremendous potential to provide inputs for

the further development of the international

community, as recognized by the World Trade

Organization.

The New Partnership for Africa's Development

(NEPAD), conceptualized by African leaders and

welcomed at the Summit of the Group of Eight

industrialized countries (G-8), represents an idea

whose time has come. The international community too

welcomed NEPAD a few days ago, when it was

presented by a high-level panel of African heads of

State or Government during the present session of the

General Assembly.

Implementation of NEPAD in partnership with

the developed countries will mark the dawn of a new

era for the economic development of Africa's abundant

natural resources. Thus, Africa, one of the largest and

most centrally located continents, can become the

breadbasket of the world. Grenada as part of the

African diaspora, hails NEPAD with great expectation

and excitement.

The United Nations has the ability, with the

involvement of its Members, to make a difference. It is

the international forum that struggles with and attempts

to find solutions to difficult global problems. Grenada

has been watching closely the developments in

international peace and security; economic

development; social advancement and cooperation; the

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fight against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria and

other threatening diseases; environmental

sustainability; and a plethora of other regional, national

and international issues.

For small countries such as Grenada, attending

international conferences presents a paradox. We aspire

to be integrally involved in these important

conferences, yet financial constraints sometimes

outweigh the benefits of being in attendance. Our

absence, as many other small nations would agree,

should not by any means be construed as a lack of

interest. Enormous expectations and optimism must be

balanced with a degree of realism. My delegation

assures the General Assembly that it fully supports the

efforts of the United Nations to face the many

challenges that arise.

However, we must ensure that the many decisions

taken at the United Nations summit conferences are

implemented. But the goals must be achievable and

beneficial to all Member States.