The Holy See’s Permanent Observer to the United Nations has urged the international community to help Small Island Developing States through concrete efforts, which can include debt relief and debt cancellation. Source: Vatican News.
“My delegation calls upon all member states to reaffirm their commitment to the sustainable development of countries in special situations through tangible action and enhanced cooperation.”
Archbishop Gabriele Caccia made the appeal during his address on Wednesday to the UN meeting on “Small Island Developing States: Implementing the outcomes of the fourth SIDS Conference” in New York, as he urged wealthier nations to consider debt relief or cancellation to SIDS crippled by unsustainable debt.
Archbishop Caccia said it “is evident that the international community, as a ‘family of nations,’ bears the responsibility to provide assistance to countries in special situations, including SIDS, in their pursuit of sustainable development”.
He expressed the Holy See’s “great concern” that progress required to achieve Sustainable Development Goals is hindered by the challenges faced by countries in special situations, such as “crippling debts, slow growth prospects, persistent food insecurity and malnutrition, extreme vulnerability to climate change and natural disasters.
Archbishop Caccia made the appeal during his address on Wednesday to the UN meeting on “Small Island Developing States: Implementing the outcomes of the fourth SIDS invited nations to recall that the 2030 Agenda includes “a commitment to prioritise reaching those ‘furthest behind first,’” noting Pope Francis’ observation that “we are responsible for the fragility of others as we strive to build a common future”.
In this context, he applauded the adoption of the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS, which requires countries to provide SIDS with the fiscal space needed to invest in the transformative programs that address the needs of their people, calling it “a reaffirmation of the unique vulnerabilities faced by SIDS and a renewed commitment to support them in their pursuit of resilient prosperity”.
Archbishop Caccia said the Holy See “reiterates its call on wealthier nations to consider debt relief, or indeed, debt cancellation”.
“Such radical but necessary action,” he proposed, “will liberate SIDS from the untenable choice between servicing mounting interest payments, or allocating resources to invest in health, education, social protection systems and infrastructure.”
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Holy See: Wealthier nations can assist island nations through debt relief (By Deborah Castellano Lubov, Vatican News)
