CARIBBEAN TODAY 66-, US, U iiiii3^ a INEWS U.N. ROUND-UP Leaders of many Caribbean nations were in NewYork last month to attend the 61st Session of the U.N. General Assembly. This month Caribbean Today publishes a summary, compiled from CMC and other reports, of addresses delivered by some of those leaders. Suriname wants U.N. to deal with poverty Suriname has called on the interna- tional com- munity to increase coop- eration "in areas of rele- vance to humanity" so that the Venetiaan world's peo- ples can enjoy a fair and decent standard of living. President Runaldo Venetiaan told the U.N. that guaranteeing the availability of the necessary infrastruc- ture, health services and edu- cation for all is still a major challenge. "The world order contin- ues to deny the vast majority of the international communi- ty the opportunity to escape poverty and to utilize its abili- ty and skills to achieve progress and prosperity," Venetiaan said. "There is need for enhanced cooperation in areas of relevance to humanity if we are to create an international community that will be able to offer all of its members a fair chance to a decent life." He said the appeal for an enabling international envi- ronment for sustainable devel- opment and poverty eradica- tion is still "a vivid one," not- ing that the international com- munity needs to support the call of the vast majority of member states for fair terms of trade, increased market access for products from the developing countries and for a "more effective and support- ive" international financial architecture. Venetiaan said Suriname is fully supportive of the implementation of the inter- national global partnership for development, explaining that it can obtain guidance for its decisions from commitments adopted at major United Nations conferences and sum- mits. He urged this "partner- ship" to aim at energizing the "political will" of all states so that those commitments could be implemented and "gen- uine" opportunities for sus- tainable development and poverty eradication realized. St. Vincent calls for leadership Stating that he was speaking on behalf of the world's "mar- ginalized," St. Vincent and the Grenadines' Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves called on the United Nations to provide "coherent kl ad rlup in addressing the plight of the world's poorest countries. In his impassioned contri- bution to the 61st Session of the U.N. General Assembly Debate, Gonsalves said all "right- thinking per- sons want and demand" this Gonsalves type of lead- ership from a "reformed" global body that is "true to its central mandates to serve humanity well." Speed up aid to poorer nations Barbados Barbados has called for speedier implementation of decisions on increased finan- cial aid for the world's poorest countries. Senior Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Dame Billie Miller told the 61st Session of the U.N. General Assembly that these resources were needed urgently, partic- ularly for coun- tries like her own, which have complet- ed preparation of comprehen- sive national Miller development strategies to attain the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), among other interna- tional development goals and objectives. "While developing coun- tries must retain responsibility for their own development, national actions will not be sufficient to bring about their fuller participation in the global economy," she said, alluding to promised aid made to developing countries last year by the Group of the World's Richest Countries (G8) during their meeting in Gleneagles, Scotland. "These actions must be complemented by a support- ive international system, essential elements of which include improvement in global governance, improved coher- ence in the operation of the United Nations System and a greater voice for the United Nations in global development policy dialogue," she added. At the same time, Dame Billie called for the "democra- tization" of the governance of the international financial and trade systems, stating that changes in global governance have not kept pace with the growth of global interdepend- ence. In addition, she called for the adoption of lit rH. I slp," to end what she regard- ed as the "marginalization" of developing countries and small economies in the policy formulation and decision- making processes in the multi- lateral, financial and trade institutions. "Globalization must be made more inclusive and its benefits more equitably dis- tributed," she said. The Barbados minister said improvement in global governance must be "mir- Srn rd in the strengthening of the management and coordi- nation of the U.N.'s opera- tional activities at the country level, pointing out that this would ensure delivery of development assistance in "a more coordinated way." Dame Billie lamented that the "development cluster of issues," emanating from the historic 2005 U.N. Summit has been "painfully slow," stating that Barbados's assessment is "decidedly mixed." Street Address: 9020 SW 152nd Street, Miami, FL 33157 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 6010 Miami, FL 33116-6010. Telephone: (305) 238-2868 (305) 253-6029 Fax: (305) 252-7843 1-800-605-7516 Jamaica: 654-7728 E-mail: caribtoday@earthlink.net Send ads to: ctads@bellsouth.net Vol. 17, Number 11 OCT. 2006 PETER A WEBLEY Publisher GORDON WILLIAMS Managing Editor MANUEL MOREL Director of Advertising DAMIAN P. GREGORY Deputy Managing Editor SABRINA FENNELL Graphic Artist DOROTHY CHIN Account Executive SUNDAY SELLERS Account Executive AMANDA ECHEVERRI Accounting Manager Caribbean Media Source Media Representatives TOM JONAS 353 St. Nicolas Street, Suite 200 Montreal, Quebec, Canada H2Y 2P1 Tel: (514) 931-0422 Fax: (514) 931-0455 E-mail: tom@cmsworldmedia.com Jamaica Bureau MARIE GREGORY (876) 925-5640 P.O. Box 127, Constant Spring Kingston 8, Jamaica Opinions expressed by editors and writers are not necessarily those of the publisher. Caribbean Today, an independent news magazine, is published every month by Caribbean Publishing Services, Inc. Subscription rates are: US$20 per year (Bulk); 1st Class $35 per year. Caribbean Today is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or photos. To guarantee return, please include a self- addressed stamped envelope. Articles appearing in Caribbean Today may not be reproduced without written permission of the editor. ISSUES OF INTEREST rIIuLuudpII uy UNI rIILU Senator Anthony Hylton, left, Jamaica's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, is greeted by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan at U.N. Headquaters in New York City. The men met for 15 minutes late last month at Annan's office to discuss matters of interest to Jamaica and the world body. Hylton, along with several Caribbean leaders, were in New York to attend the U.N.'s General Assembly. October 2006