RC Trebucq's Remarks at UN Sub Regional Team Engagement with the Government of Grenada

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

• Hon. Dickon Mitchell, Prime Minister of Petite Martinique, Carriacou and Grenada
• Ministers of Government
• Secretary to the Cabinet, Ms Ruth Rouse
• Permanent Secretaries
• Other government Officials
• UN Colleagues
• Media representatives

Good afternoon!

I am very delighted to be back in the Spice Isle. I believe I also speak for my UN colleagues when I say that today is indeed extraordinary. We are here to discuss our collective engagement as the United Nations Sub-Regional Team (UNST) with you PM and your Government. This day, I am sure, will be beneficial for Grenada, Petite Martinique, and Carriacou. We have come to hear about your national priorities and share what we currently do with you. We are indeed very grateful for that opportunity.

I want to again commend you PM and Ministers on your success during the recent general election (two months ago, today); and to congratulate the Government and people of Grenada, Petite Martinique, and Carriacou, on a well-executed, and peaceful democratic process.

Grenada, like other Small Island Developing States (SIDS), is at the development cross-roads. You are blessed with the creativity, ingenuity, and resilience of the Grenadian people, but are exposed to the vulnerabilities that most SIDS face, including impacts from exogenous shocks such as changing weather patterns, global pandemics like COVID-19 and as a small open economy susceptible to economic crises.

Regrettably, you and your Caribbean neighbours are negatively impacted by the triple crises of food, energy, and finance which is having a negative impact on the most vulnerable, with knock on effects such as increasing incidence of food insecurity, rising food prices, and increasing energy costs including for transportation.

PM, as the UN, we stand ready to support and amplify the transformative agenda set out by your government which promotes inclusivity, people empowerment, particularly of the youth; food security; a holistic approach to health care, climate change and the blue economy, among other areas.

I congratulate Grenada for the recent appointment of Simon Steil as head of UNFCCC, which is a great recognition to the SIDS agenda. I know from our initial discussion PM that you and your government are committed to multilateralism and the UN. I thank you as this is so critical in these times of uncertainty. This is why the UN Secretary General has put forward The Common Agenda proposal to strengthen international solidarity and collective ambition.

We welcome this support and pledge to continue working closely with the government in responding to the needs and priorities of Grenada. This is why we are pleased that in January, Grenada signed the 2022-2026 United Nations Multi-Country Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (MSDCF). The MSDCF will serve as the overarching blueprint for UN collaboration in the region for the next five years, and cascades into a more specific Country Implementation Plan (CIP).

The 2022-2023 CIP captures all the work implemented by the fourteen (14) UN agencies here. Signed in April, it promotes acceleration of SDG efforts, through 1/ COVID-19 socio-economic recovery; 2/ Climate resilience and environmental sustainability; 3/ Competitive economy, including digital and blue economy; 4/ High human development, including gender equality, universal education and health, social protection.

The UN is committed to being a partner of choice to help Grenada achieve sustainable development and your government’s vision.

The repositioning of the UN Development System (UN DS), aims to provide more tailored, demand-driven support to each country, adding value to the UN-Grenada partnership.

We currently have five (5) UN Agencies, Funds and Programmes with staff stationed on the ground in Grenada – UNDP, PAHO, UNICEF, FAO and UN Women; and one Country Coordination Officer from my office who works from Grenada to help coordinate, fast-track, and facilitate UN-Grenada relations.

I am very confident that having such a wide portfolio and diverse and growing group of UN colleagues here will help your government implement its transformative agenda to ensure that no one is left behind.

One of the objectives of the UN DS reform is to promote more coherent and coordinated cooperation of the UN in-country.

Besides the CIP, one way to achieve this is through our UN joint programming (JP). By connecting the expertise of several UN Agencies to tackle multi-dimensional challenges while at the same time reducing transaction costs for government in its interaction with the UN DS. For example, the UN system is working together to:

• Promote Gender Equality in Key Economic Sectors and Women’s Empowerment, focuses on youth and women in agriculture, agro-processing and fisheries, and strengthening SMEs, especially those owned by women. This is a JP under the UN Trust Fund for Human Security.
• Partner with the government and civil society organisations to address the scourge of gender-based violence, and intimate partner violence. This Grenada Spotlight Initiative involves UNDP, UNFPA, PAHO and UN Women, with support of the European Union.
• With UNICEF, ILO, WFP and UNESCO working together, we will soon launch the JP Resilient Caribbean: by Engaging & Training Youth for employability and entrepreneurships, Strengthening Integrated Social Protection in Grenada.

My colleague agency heads will elaborate on the collaborative work and plans of the UN here.

Finally, we welcome the recent Voluntary National Review delivered at the High-Level Political Forum. I look forward to discussing with the government how we can work together to accelerate implementation of the SDGs.

I have no doubt that this new administration will redouble its efforts towards the attainment of the SDG’s now under 7 years away from target.

I wish to end by reiterating the commitment of our UN sub-regional team to work with you to build and convene the necessary partnerships you require to achieve your goals.

I thank you!