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HAVANA, Cuba — In a gathering that blended diplomatic ceremony with heartfelt fraternity, St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) and Cuba marked the 34th anniversary of their formal diplomatic relations on Saturday, with a celebratory event hosted by SVG’s Havana embassy. More than three and a half decades after the two Caribbean nations first established official ties, the occasion brought together over 36 ambassadors and chargés d’affaires accredited to Cuba, senior Cuban government representatives, Vincentian students studying on the island, and special guests who have shaped the bilateral partnership over decades.

Speaking at the reception, SVG’s Ambassador to Cuba Angella Jackson — herself a graduate of a Cuban university — framed the three-decade partnership as a model of South-South cooperation built on shared respect and mutual solidarity. “This is 34 years of friendship rooted in respect, solidarity, and cooperation between two brotherly peoples,” Jackson told attendees. She outlined Cuba’s long-standing contributions to SVG’s development, noting that the island has trained hundreds of Vincentian professionals, deployed medical teams during SVG’s most critical moments, and shared technical expertise through transformational national projects.

Key landmark infrastructure projects, including Argyle International Airport and the Georgetown Diagnostic Centre, alongside the daily work of Cuban medical professionals in Kingstown, stand as tangible proof that the bilateral bond extends far beyond formal diplomatic exchanges, Jackson said. “This friendship is not only diplomatic — it is deeply human,” she emphasized.

In turn, Jackson reaffirmed SVG’s unwavering support for Cuba on the international stage, where the small Caribbean nation has long defended Cuba’s sovereignty and spoken out against the decades-long U.S. economic blockade. Acknowledging the severe energy challenges and widespread blackouts currently impacting Cuban households, Jackson extended explicit solidarity from SVG, a country that has itself weathered repeated natural disasters and adversity. “We know what it means to face hardship, and we know the Cuban people, like our own, are deeply resilient. Cuba is not alone,” she said, pledging that SVG will continue to stand with the island.

Drawing from her own experience as a young student who came to Cuba to study and grew into a diplomatic leader, Jackson noted that 34 years of partnership has demonstrated that South-South cooperation is not just a concept — it is a living, impactful reality. “I came here as a young Rasta, and I transformed into a professional woman; a person who understands that we should not give only from what is left over, but from what we have,” she said.

The event paid special tribute to Cuban engineers, construction workers and medical professionals who have delivered projects and care across SVG, including those who worked on Argyle International Airport and served with the long-standing Cuban Medical Brigade. Jackson called these professionals living, breathing examples of the bilateral friendship, adding: “Here, there is not only diplomacy. Here, there is family.” Closing her remarks, she called for continued deepening and diversification of ties, noting that small and large nations alike, when united by mutual respect, can work together to build a more equitable global order. “Thank you, Cuba, for 34 years of unconditional brotherhood. Long live the relations between our peoples!” she said.

Cuba’s Vice Minister of International Relations Josefina Vidal Ferrero joined the event alongside other senior Cuban foreign affairs officials, including Rafael Dausa Cespedes, Director for America, Mexico and the Caribbean, and representatives from Cuban civil society organizations such as the Cuban Institute for Friendship with the People. Vidal Ferrero recalled that diplomatic ties were first established in 1992 under then-SVG Prime Minister Sir James Mitchell of the New Democratic Party — the same party that currently holds office in Kingstown. “The history of these 34 years reflects what two peoples who are geographically, historically and culturally close can achieve. We have helped and supported one another over these more than three decades,” she said.

Vidal Ferrero highlighted that to date, nearly 400 Vincentian students have accessed free university education in Cuba — including Ambassador Jackson herself, who graduated with a degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of Ciego de Ávila in 2007. Noting that two of Jackson’s three children, who have Cuban heritage, were in attendance at the event, Vidal Ferrero called the ambassador a living reflection of the fraternal bond between the two nations.

She went on to outline a long roster of shared achievements, from a national program to bring electric lighting to thousands of Vincentian homes, to hundreds of life-changing eye surgeries performed by Cuban specialists that restored sight to Vincentian residents. Alongside regional partners Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba also contributed core engineering and construction support to build Argyle International Airport, a transformative infrastructure project for SVG’s economy and connectivity. When La Soufriere volcano erupted in SVG in 2021, Cuba was among the first nations to deploy emergency support, and today maintains a permanent presence of medical staff, construction experts, and energy and civil aviation specialists across the country.

Vidal Ferrero also emphasized that SVG has reciprocated this solidarity, standing with Cuba through its own challenges — including devastating hurricanes and the widespread shortages caused by the long-standing U.S. blockade, which Vidal Ferrero described as a “genocidal” policy that targets the Cuban people through hunger and deprivation. She noted that SVG has consistently joined its Caribbean neighbors in denouncing the blockade, and that Cuba will never forget this unwavering support. “Our gratitude is eternal,” she said.

Beyond diplomatic remarks, the event featured a vibrant cultural program showcasing the heritage of both nations, centered on Vincentian cultural traditions. Three Vincentian students studying in Cuba performed Alston “Becket” Cyrus’ iconic patriotic ballad “St. Vincent, My Homeland”, while veteran 35-year-old steelpan arranger and band captain Tillal Webb wowed the crowd with steelpan arrangements of global hits including Kevin Lyttle’s “Turn Me On” and Enrique Iglesias’ “Bailando”. Webb was later joined by the Band Gala Mayor for a set that included additional Vincentian classics and the iconic Cuban folk song “Guantanamera”, alongside original compositions from band leader Alejandro Mayor. The celebratory gathering concluded with a joint toast to the future of the bilateral partnership.

At the 56th Annual Meeting of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) Board of Governors held in Nassau, Bahamas, Godwin Friday, Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, delivered an urgent address on behalf of the bank’s borrowing member countries (BMCs), calling for faster, more decisive institutional reform and expanded investment in climate-resilient development amid cascading economic and environmental threats across the Caribbean region.

Friday warned that small open Caribbean economies are facing mounting systemic pressures that threaten long-term development prospects. The region carries legacy structural vulnerabilities it did not create, he noted, and these gaps have been widened by ongoing global economic turbulence. Most critically, central government debt across the region remains chronically high: nine of the CDB’s borrowing member countries hold debt-to-GDP ratios above the 60% prudential threshold, with St. Vincent and the Grenadines itself carrying a ratio exceeding 113%. This massive debt overhang, Friday emphasized, severely constrains governments’ ability to fund growth-driving infrastructure and social programs while protecting vulnerable populations, forcing regional states to achieve more development outcomes with limited fiscal resources.

Beyond high debt levels, the region is grappling with shrinking access to affordable financing. Tightening global supply chains, spiking shipping and fuel costs, and soaring cost of living have stretched public budgets, with underlying fragility predating recent conflicts in the Middle East that have amplified these pressures. At the same time, official development assistance from traditional global partners has seen a sharp decline, creating a critical financing gap for climate action. Friday noted that the Caribbean requires an estimated US$14 billion annually to implement comprehensive climate adaptation and mitigation measures, but currently mobilizes less than 10% of that target. “It is therefore imperative that our development partners become more adaptive, more responsive, and willing to provide highly concessional financing and dedicated resources for loss and damage that will not worsen a bad debt situation,” Friday said.

Framing the CDB as an indispensable institution for Caribbean development and regional integration, Friday argued that the bank holds a unique responsibility to lead targeted solutions for the region’s vulnerable small economies. As the only multilateral development bank owned and governed primarily by Caribbean stakeholders, the CDB carries unmatched legitimacy built on decades of on-the-ground experience, deep local knowledge, and specialized talent across the region. “Regional economic integration is sustainable only if partners all derive benefit from it, and economic disparities among member countries do not grow too wide. The bank is uniquely positioned to promote that end,” Friday noted.

To illustrate the impact of strategic CDB investment, Friday highlighted projects in his own country that have boosted national resilience after years of repeated climate shocks. Major bank-supported initiatives including the modernization of Kingstown’s port, school infrastructure upgrades, rural development programs, and road network improvements have shifted St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ long-term resilience trajectory, he said, adding that this model of targeted, comprehensive partnership should guide the CDB’s work across all borrowing member countries.

With the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season already underway and fresh memories of the devastating damage caused by 2024’s Hurricane Beryl and 2025’s Hurricane Melissa, Friday stressed that delays in climate action carry enormous economic and human costs. He called for a new regional climate strategy centered on adaptation and resilience, with priority investment in climate-resilient economic assets, upgraded coastal protection infrastructure, and expanded early warning systems for extreme weather. In particular, he highlighted the CDB’s Climate Change Project Preparation Fund as a critical tool for removing bottlenecks that block timely investment in climate action.

Turning to broader economic resilience, Friday called for support to help Caribbean states diversify their narrow, historically vulnerable economic bases while maintaining inclusive growth. He identified key priority areas for investment: digitalization of public services, transition to renewable energy—particularly large-scale solar development—to reduce fossil fuel import dependence, sustainable management of marine resources to grow the blue economy, and expanded value-added agro-processing to strengthen domestic food security, cut costly food import bills, and boost export earnings. Friday also emphasized that growth models that leave low-income and vulnerable populations behind are inherently “misguided and unsustainable.”

Resilience must ultimately be people-centered, Friday added, calling for strengthened investment in social resilience through expanded social protection, improved access to basic services, and targeted community development. He specifically highlighted the CDB’s flagship Basic Needs Trust Fund as a critical program that must be preserved and expanded to advance equitable development across the region.

Friday offered full endorsement of the CDB’s ongoing institutional reform agenda, known as CDB Forward, framing it as a necessary response to a long-standing implementation deficit in regional development. He stressed that borrowing member countries have issued a clear mandate for the bank to move beyond designing reforms and deliver tangible, accelerated implementation. “The bank must make its development impact felt with greater speed and with far more reach. The borrowing member countries have delivered a clear mandate. We must move swiftly to implement the transformative reforms to eliminate friction and drive our institution forward. The need is urgent, and therefore the time to act is now,” Friday said. He outlined key immediate priorities: faster project delivery, targeted efforts to reduce large undisbursed loan balances, and modernization of the bank’s procurement framework. He also encouraged the CDB to pursue expanded strategic partnerships with other multilateral development banks and bilateral donors to mobilize additional private capital and scale up co-financing opportunities.

In a direct appeal to CDB shareholders and non-regional partner states, Friday called for robust financial backing for the bank’s upcoming 10-year strategic plan covering 2026–2035, as well as the 11th iteration of the Special Development Fund (SDF 11), which provides concessional financing to the region’s most vulnerable member states. This support, he said, is essential to ensure Caribbean development is shaped by intentional policy and regional solidarity, rather than ongoing systemic vulnerability.

Closing his address, Friday drew on the legacy of Sir Arthur Lewis, the CDB’s founding president and a pioneer of Caribbean development thought, to frame the region’s path forward. He noted that while resistance, adaptation, and an unconquerable spirit have long defined the Caribbean people’s experience, the region must move beyond framing itself through vulnerability and claim agency over its own development. “Resistance, adaptation, and an unconquerable spirit define the historical experience of the Caribbean people. Despite our limitations, we continue to deliver better lives for our people,” Friday said. “However, the region’s development path must not be defined or be limited by our vulnerability. It must be shaped by our deliberate choices, our capable institutions, and by regional solidarity.” Echoing Lewis’ iconic words, he reminded delegates that “The Caribbean people can solve their own problems, but first they must find the secret that will put hope, initiative, direction, and an unconquerable will into the management of their affairs.” Friday closed by urging all governors to enter the meeting’s closed sessions with a clear commitment to advancing governance reforms, sustainable development pathways, and building a stable, inclusive, and thriving Caribbean for future generations.