Cuba participates in meeting of Forum on Sustainable Development

HAVANA, Cuba, Apr 27 (ACN) Cuba is participating at the 6th Meeting of the Forum of Latin American and Caribbean countries on Sustainable Development, which opened today at the headquarters of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean in Santiago de Chile, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment (MINCEX by its Spanish acronym) reported.

The Cuban delegation is headed by Deborah Rivas Saavedra, deputy head of MINCEX, and includes Pedro L. Pedroso, Cuba's special representative to the United Nations to coordinate the presidency of the G77 plus China; Mercedes Vicente Sotolongo, Havana's ambassador to Chile; and other representatives of the foreign ministry, the ministry of foreign trade and foreign investment, and civil society.

Rivas Saavedra intervened to ratify the Caribbean nation's commitment to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the country's main advances since the presentation of its first Voluntary National Report in 2021, with emphasis on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) under review.

In her speech, she denounced the impact of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States for more than 60 years, as well as the inclusion of the country on the list of states that allegedly sponsor terrorism; actions that have a direct impact on the sustainable development of the country and constitute the main obstacle to the implementation of the Agenda.

Likewise, Cuba's commitment was ratified in its capacity as President of the G77 plus China to promote concrete cooperation projects that accompany the development strategies of the countries of the region.

The Cuban delegation's agenda includes meetings with Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary of the United Nations; Jose Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, Executive Secretary of ECLAC; and other representatives of United Nations agencies, funds and programs.

The Forum brings together representatives of the governments of Latin America and the Caribbean, international and regional organizations, development banks, representatives of the academic sector and civil society, with the aim of following up on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in the region.