By: Kebba AF Touray
The Foreign Affairs Minister of the Republic of Cuba Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, has called on countries to make concerted efforts to combat COVID-19. The appeal was conveyed in a press release issued by its Embassy in the Gambia on Wednesday March 25th 2020.
The release reiterated Cuba’s call for a virtual technical workshop to share experiences on the coronavirus, with the conviction to overcome it.
“Cuba calls for a virtual technical workshop between health specialists to establish communication channels, share experiences and information to face Covid-19,” the release indicated; that such efforts should include all countries of the hemisphere including Canada and the USA.
The Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla who made the announcement during the first Extraordinary meeting of Foreign Ministers and Health Associations of Caribbean States (ACS), said urgent efforts are needed to tackle the pandemic. Parrilla said the region faces a crisis that exceeds all ACS member countries whose consequences will be severe and lasting.
“The rapid spread of the disease demands that we unite our wills to develop joint actions of cooperation that will make it possible for us to face Covid-19,” he said.
According to Parrilla, this is due to the fact that time demands setting aside political differences, to combat the global pandemic.
“Each country can and must contribute what it can. The pandemic does not respect borders or ideologies. To face such a serious challenge, we must join forces and support each other,” the Cuban Foreign Minister said; that a regional response to COVID-19 must include strategies for testing, care giving, communication, supply coordination, food security, immigration as well as mapping out the psychological impact of the virus and quarantine. He said reality requires putting the will to act and solidarity before inaction and selfishness as humanity demands for an effective solution.
“The Caribbean countries will also have to face devastating and lasting effects in the economic and social spheres once the pandemic is over,” Parrilla said.
The ACS Ministerial Extraordinary Meeting was attended by over 33 countries, territories and regional organizations.
