Cuba calls for joint actions in favor of developing countries

HAVANA, Cuba, May 16 (ACN) Cuba stressed today during the debates of the 216th Executive Council of UNESCO the need for the organization's commitment and action to counteract the problems of developing countries, caused and aggravated by the unjust international order.

Yahima Esquivel, Cuban ambassador to the United Nations, stressed that the current economic order has generated great challenges for the world, particularly for developing countries, and these are aggravated by the systemic nature of a multidimensional crisis (climate, energy, health, food and economic).

However, she warned in her speech, published on the website of the Cuban Foreign Ministry, structural problems such as illiteracy, the digital divide, Internet governance, or ethics and security in cyberspace should remain at the center of international debate and common agendas.

Esquivel stressed that under the Cuban presidency of the Group of 77 + China at the United Nations during 2023, the Ministers of Education and Culture of the mechanism agreed to promote unity, solidarity and international cooperation to move towards a recovery of the cultural and educational sector in the countries of the South and reduce the gaps.

They also recognized UNESCO's leadership in strengthening South-South and triangular cooperation mechanisms to mobilize resources to promote projects, facilitate the exchange of best practices and knowledge, and foster strategic alliances.

The Cuban ambassador also denounced the unilateral economic, commercial and financial blockade by the United States against Cuba, which has lasted for more than six decades and was intensified during the pandemic.