CÚPULA DA AMÉRICA LATINA E DO CARIBE SOBRE ... - Funag

INTERVENÇÕES (VERSÃO ORIGINAL)
fertilizer and other inputs. Venezuela is assisting in this regard, but we need a
comprehensive program to deal with the question of fertilizer because the
price of fertilizer between 2005 and today has gone up seven times, and it is
vital that we get this right. Otherwise we will not be able to reduce the cost of
domestic production of agricultural commodities, and we have enough fertilizers
plants throughout this Latin America and Caribbean for us to address this in a
coordinated way.
There are also the issues of coordinated tourism, technology,
telecommunications, disaster preparedness, wellness, and very importantly,
too, banking. Again, Venezuela and ALBA have been putting some work
together, but we need to go further. We have immense resources in this region;
we must never forget that. I have been advised that the tenth largest economy
in the world now is Brazil, the 12 th is Mexico. That is not at all bad in this Latin
American and Caribbean region. And there are other well-off countries, and
if we put our resources together we will be able to be a phenomenal force in
this world, although most importantly for our people.
Comrade Lula, one final matter. Outside of Africa, Brazil contains the
largest number of persons of African descent anywhere in the world. Persons
of African descent are scattered throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.
In the Caribbean, they represent a large portion of the population, and the
Caribbean countries are predominantly of African descent. I know sometimes
people find it strange that President Lula and I come from the same Portuguese
ancestry, that I am one of only of 500 Portuguese in Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines. And I am the most popular politician in Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, where the population is largely of African descent. That tells you
something about my roots and how I have lived my own life.
Lastly, I do not think we can leave here without seeking at this
Summit to build an Africa, Latin America, and Caribbean Commission.
Africa is in pain and the faces of African men and women are strained
and anxious. I think we have a duty to assist in easing the strain and the
anxiety. Fidel and the Cubans in Angola and at the battle of Cuito
Cuanavale helped to free South Africa from Apartheid. The Cubans have
thousands of doctors and other technical and skilled personnel in Africa.
We can’t leave it all to Cuba. I believe we must act in an international
spirit beyond the borders of Latin America and the Caribbean, and I
would say that we must give particular focus to Africa. Thank you very
much. I am obliged.
102