The dignitary participated online in the high-level segment of the General Assembly, specifically in the session on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Head of State stressed that for the vast majority of countries the SDGs do not seem achievable in less than a decade.

An unjust and undemocratic international order is the cause of the inequalities and exclusion faced today by the great majorities in a scenario aggravated by the devastating effects of the Covid-19 pandemic,’ he said.

Díaz-Canel emphasized that as long as this world order prevails, the noblest goals will remain a chimera.

He also recalled that Cuba assumed the 17 commitments of the SDGs aware ‘of the great challenges imposed on us by the condition of an island developing state and the impact of the iron economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States’.

In this regard, he again denounced before that multilateral organization that Washington’s blockade, intensified during the pandemic, constitutes the main obstacle to the country’s efforts to advance in its economic and social development and in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

However, he ratified the will to build a sovereign, independent, socialist, democratic, prosperous and sustainable nation.

The president reiterated Havana’s commitment to the 2030 Agenda and specified that the Antillean nation promotes the integral and full development of human beings, with emphasis on equity and higher living standards for the population.

‘Cuba will continue to promote innovation, scientific research and the construction of alliances among the various actors of society as essential tools for recovery and progress,’ he said.

He added that the island maintains its intention to share experiences with other nations in the framework of South-South collaboration.

On the other hand, he advocated for a renewed and strengthened multilateralism, for solidarity cooperation and the search for global solutions to common problems.

Building the world we dream of is an enormous task, but it is possible if we renounce selfishness and work together to transform the current unjust international order into a more just, democratic and equitable one in which, at last, no one is left behind’, he emphasized.

The meeting in which Díaz-Canel participated provides world leaders with a platform to showcase the plans, actions and solutions needed to address the Covid-19 pandemic and put the world on track to achieve the SDGs.

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