Committee: United Nation Security Council
Country: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Delegate: Chingkuoy Lee
Topic area: The call for international solidarity and
transparency toward the combat of the COVID-19 crisis
Thank you, honorable chairman and fellow all delegates.
Casually, a pneumonia of unknown cause detected in Wuhan, China was first reported to the World
Health Organization (WHO) Country Office in China on 31 December 2019. But The outbreak
was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020.
The coronavirus (COVID-19) is drastically affecting 213 countries and territories around the
world and 2 international conveyances. Over 6,500,000 cases recently has been release by WHO,
and over 380,000 people who has been death by this outbreak.
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, typically also affected by this outbreak the same, which the
pandemic was confirmed to have reached Saint Vincent since March 2020. As of Tuesday, June
2, 2020 there are 26 cases confirmed and recovered 15. Politically, the coronavirus has caused a
complete collapse in the tourism industry and significant contractions in both the agricultural and
the distributive trades sectors across the Caribbean. We the member state of the Caribbean
Community (CARICOM), the majority of the countries in CARICOM are heavily dependent on
tourism, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of all the other CARICOM members is at least one
third dependent on tourism. According to Minister of Finance Camillo Gonsalves, “there are some
hotels in St Vincent and the Grenadines currently with zero occupants, not a single guest in the
hotel. Basically, all forward bookings have been cancelled at this stage at least from now through
the end of April as a start. Cancellations are coming in daily because persons are faced with travel
restrictions because of COVID 19”.
The global pandemics has risen up led the economy initially started to became deeply crisis
globally. Saint Vincent and the Grenadine’s government will provide XCD 65 million
(1XCD = 0.37 US dollars), representing 3 percent of GDP, to assist the economy in various
ways. This will be funded by the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Eastern
Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), National Insurance Services (NIS) – these bodies have
announced an extensive stimulus package for companies and individual to meet the need of
outbreak when the tourism industry getting worse off. Yet the World Bank also activated US$4.5
million on April 17 to provide immediate funding for Saint Vincent and the Grenadines’ response
to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, aimed at strengthening the capacity of the health
system. The financing will be used to improve the ability to isolate patients, increase testing
capacity, and purchase critical supplies, including personal protective equipment, mobile isolation
units, testing equipment, reagents, gloves, and masks. It will also support preparedness and
response capacity for other public health emergencies by increasing access to medical equipment
and expanding the capacity of hospitals.
Fellow delegates and high-principled chairman, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines firmly believes
that under the authority of the human nature, we all can combat toward this global pandemic but
unless we all cooperative through solidarity and transparency to take over this pandemic. We are
hopeful, too, that our many international friends and allies will assist us in one way or another as
we expand and consolidate our socio-economic recovery in the post-COVID-19 period. We would
like to rise up a few suggestions:
1. Urged all members in this conference to cooperate because the COVID-19
pandemic is a global challenge, and no country can handle it alone. Unilateralism
and isolationism cannot end this crisis, and evading responsibility will only hinder
cooperation. The only way for humanity to forward is to join hands together to
resolve misunderstandings and prejudices, which the affluent countries trying to
give aid and fund in terms of enhancing health system to some impoverished
countries, whereas can’t control the spread of pandemics situation in a country.
2. When the COVID-19 vaccine does become available. It’s should be treated as a
global public good. To that end, we are both calling on governments to ensure that
the outcomes of publicly funded COVID-19 research are affordable and accessible
to everyone around the world.
3. Urge China and the United States postpone the “phase one” trade deal meanwhile
the outbreak still spread through and affects the economy across the globe. And
also bring back the solidarity among the veto powers to rise up all of the economies
that have been turning into crisis while pandemics.