President of Dominica, His Excellency Charles A. Savarin has called on the international community to join together to give much needed assistance to Haiti.
The situation in Haiti has escalated over the years resulting in over seventy percent of the population admitting that they do not feel safe in the country.
While addressing the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, President Savarin says this crisis requires immediate action.
“The prevailing situation in our fellow CARICOM Member of State of Haiti is a dire one which deserves urgent international intervention. Haiti faces deep rooted crises on multiple fronts. Much of it arising from its post-independence relations with the international community, poor governance over the years and lingering effects of the catastrophic devastation visited on that country by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake in January of 210. To date, Mr. President, while there may have been preliminary figures, I am not aware of any comprehensive assessment detailing the estimate of the destruction of the 2010 earthquake nor a World Bank estimate of the cost of reconstruction, as has been done with the situation in Ukraine,” President Savarin stated
He reaffirmed Dominica’s commitment to supporting Haiti as they lead the solution to the crisis.
“The fact remains that since 2010, Haiti has been hit by several earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, pandemics and sociopolitical instability. If ever there was a cause deserving the full attention of the international community, that cause is Haiti. The Commonwealth of Dominica aligns itself with processes outlined by the Organization of American States to support the people of Haiti, in August 2022, as well as decisions taken by the CARICOM Community at its 45th Regular meeting of Heads of Government in July of this year, to lend active support to the Government and people of Haiti, in their efforts to arrive at a Haitian led solution to the ongoing crisis,” he noted.
President Savarin explained that food security is also a major issue for country. An IPC report stated that nearly half of the population of eleven million people is grappling with high levels of acute food security.
He called on the international community to move swiftly in their support of Haiti in key areas including security and health.
“The humanitarian situation is being further aggravated by a national security problem, including the illicit flow of arms and ammunitions and gang related violence. The Commonwealth of Dominica is of the view, that a strategy which addresses the root causes of instability in Haiti will be embraced by the people of Haiti. We also underscore that such an approach cannot be pursued without the unwavering support of the international community. My delegation, therefore, calls on the Security Council to move decisively to offer support to Haiti in key priority areas including security, governance, education, health, water and electricity, sustainable livelihoods, and long term development planning and advocacy,” President Savarin added.
Prime Minister Hon. Roosevelt Skerrit says Government remains committed to providing Dominica Electricity Services (DOMLEC) with the assistance needed to mitigate the current power outages across the island.
“I have asked the board to advise me on the actions that they are going to take to address the immediate challenges of load shedding and what are the recommendations and strategy for the medium term, albeit while we wait for the introduction of geothermal energy some years down the road,” PM Skerrit stated.
Prime Minister Skerrit says Venezuela will also provide a team of engineers to assist DOMLEC with immediate challenges.
“I met with the President of Venezuela on Saturday in Cuba, and I have, on behalf of DOMLEC, made a request of them for some support. They are in touch with DOMLEC directly from Saturday, moments after the meeting ended with the president, Venezuela has been in touch with DOMLEC. And it is the intention of Venezuela to send a team of mechanical and electrical engineers to Dominica on Tuesday, to assist DOMLEC in looking at the challenges that they have been having with a view of providing whatever support you will need to address the issue in the immediate term and the medium term,” he explained.
Prime Minister Skerrit says the issue of procurement of new generators also formed part of the discussions. He says government will assist DOMLEC with obtaining these generators to mitigate cost.
“We also discussed with the board and management of DOMLEC the issue of the procurement of new generators for DOMLEC to address the situation in the medium term, because I am sure the manager would tell you that some of the generators are old and therefore we need to address this matter in a systematic and constructive manner. we will assist DOMLEC in procuring generators because if DOMLEC were to procure those generators themselves there will be an increase in tariff , and an increase in cost for the consumers and we are trying to mitigate against that. And so the board will advise on what engagement it would like to have with the Government in assisting it in procuring these generators,” PM Skerrit added.
General Manager of DOMLEC Mrs. Bertilia McKenzie says DOMLEC is sourcing additional power on island.
“We are also going to bring on about three megawatts of generation from internal sources. DOMLEC has what you call interruptible agreements with some commercial customers, where we ask them to get off the grid. That is already in place and that is about half of a megawatt. We are going to extend that and we want to bring on very soon three megawatts of generation from using generators on island,” Mrs. McKenzie stated.
President of Dominica H.E Charles A. Savarin addressed the United Nations 2023 Sustainable Development Summit, which was held under the theme “Shaping the Future of Sustainable Development” on behalf of the Caribbean Community on Monday, September 18 2023.
President Savarin says CARICOM endorses the call for all member states to recommit towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s.)
“This summit will provide a unique opportunity to fundamentally adjust the trajectory of all member states to take positive actions towards its implementation. Mr. President, CARICOM endorses the policy, the political declaration set out by the Secretary General in a renewed call for all member states to recommit towards this transformative process. The existential threat of covid-19 over the last three years, which was exacerbated by the impact of climate change and the war in Ukraine calls for even greater leadership at the multilateral level. Therefore, what is required is a surge in commitments for Government’s and other stakeholders to take implementation of the SDGs to the next level,” he stated.
President Savarin says although challenges may arise, humanity can survive with the wealth of resources that are now available.
“The use of technology as a transformative tool must be harnessed and no citizen should be disadvantaged. The 2030 Agenda is achievable. There will always be challenges; however the capacity to overcome the most severe challenges is not an anomaly for humankind. These are indeed unprecedented times. We can draw confidence from the fact that we have accessed a wealth of knowledge and resources to meet the demand of the times. Mr. President, CARICOM remains firm in its support of the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals,” H.E Savarin added.
Prime Minister Hon. Roosevelt Skerrit has described the Group of 77 plus China Summit as a unique opportunity to have frank and open dialogue.
The G77 plus China Summit concluded in Havana Cuba over the weekend. The two-day summit was held under the theme “The Current Challenges of Development - Role of Science, Technology and Innovation”.
Prime Minister Skerrit told the leaders gathered that the summit also provided a chance to unite behind common development principles to achieve the goals of sustainability and resilience in the face of external economic shocks.
”We all accept that now more than any other time in the history of mankind we live in a world which is shaped and driven by science and technology. The reality is, notwithstanding the size of an economy or population, investments in science and technology enables innovation across all sectors which allows for new productive processes which are essential for human welfare and advancement. We have all witnessed positive results when science and technology is utilized as a driver of development. For decades, it has been this driver that has influenced the blueprints from which countries in the Caribbean and across the G77, has set and achieved primary developmental objectives and identified solutions to enhance our resilience agenda,” PM Skerrit stated.
Prime Minister Skerrit says CARICOM remains committed and constant in its advocacy for meaningful exchanges in all aspects of international relations and trade.
“These exchanges facilitate the building of capacity in critical areas, including public health, education, information technology, infrastructure development, food security, energy security, and climate change and disaster mitigation. While we in the global south have made notable progress in science and technology, we must recognize that there remains much to be done to enhance and support our development efforts. Our collective pursuit of innovation ins science and technology for global development facilitates clear and long lasting shared benefits providing an effective path to address the current challenges,” the CARICOM Chair added.
The G77 plus China Summit brought together world leaders to discuss current development challenges facing member countries and to seek common solutions.
Dominica’s delegation to the summit included Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of the Environment, Rural Modernization, Kalinago Upliftment and Constituency Empowerment Hon. Darron Lloyd and Dominica’s Ambassador to Cuba His Excellency Ian Douglas.
In recognition of Kalinago Week 2023, a delegation led by Historian and Minister of Kalinago Upliftment, Hon. Cozier Frederick conducted a school lecture series within the Kalinago Territory on September 18.
Minister Frederick was joined by Kalinago Chief Lorenzo Sanford, Members of the Kalinago Council, Cultural Officer; Prosper Paris and Miss Dominica 2023, Adicia Burton.
The school lectures commenced at the Sineku Primary School, then moved to the Salybia Primary School, Light House Christian Academy, Atkinson Primary School and Concord Primary School. The lectures focused on the history of the 1930 Kalinago Uprising and Kalinago Heritage.
During his presentation, Minister Frederick spoke of the tragedy that happened during the Kalinago Uprising and the importance of remaining thankful for the sacrifices made by the Kalinago Ancestors.
“So they came into the Kalinago Territory with guns and stuff and they were looking for things, and some people died. The police shot at some of our grandfathers and grandparents. Two people died. And it is on that day in 1930, September 19 that happened so every September 19th we try to remember that day and try to honour those people who died for the things that made us better and we try to honour and keep the culture alive because it is very important when people do good things to remember them,” Hon. Frederick stated.
Kalinago Chief, Mr. Lorenzo Sanford spoke of the objective of the school lectures in preserving the culture the children inherited from their ancestors.
“So today the idea that we have for you all, it’s making you all know that we have a very deep culture in everything that we do- in our Kalinago, indigenous culture. And it is our way of life as a people and you as young people, as you grow up you will see the difference, and learn the different things that your grandparents have done, what your grandparents have practiced. Some of them may teach it to you all, so they may- all of what they are teaching you all it’s our traditions it’s our Kalinago culture; so that you may continue to grow with that culture which is embedded in our DNA- in our blood,” the Kalinago Chief noted.
On Tuesday 19 Kalinago week continues at 10am with a Memorial Smoke Ceremony at St. Cyr and naming ceremony at the Kalinago Barana Aute at 4.pm. Thursday 10 is recognized as Kalinago Dress Day and a Kalinago Spelling Bee will be held at the Concord Primary School. On Saturday 23, a ceremony will be held in honour of Presidential Candidate, Mrs. Sylvanie Burton from 4 pm at the Kalinago Barana Aute.