BASSETERRE, St Kitts (CMC) — Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris of St Kitts Nevis says the Caribbean Community (Caricom) is on a mission to promote and safeguard the sexual and reproductive health of women, adolescent girls and children across the region.

Harris, in his capacity as Caricom’s lead head on human resources, health and HIV/AIDS, urged participants at a Clinton Global Initiative in New York on Monday to support the regional body to achieve its objectives.

“The evidence, as you shall see, is a stark reminder of the challenges we face — 35 per cent of women in Latin America and the Caribbean encounter sexual violence; cervical cancer accounts for 13 per cent of all cancers and 10 per cent of all deaths among Caribbean women; 19 per cent of young women become pregnant before they reach 18 years old; and a considerable number of adolescent girls are giving birth before the age of 15 years old,” he said.

Harris, however, said all is not lost: “There is hope — hope that the region could be the first to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV and congenital syphilis.”

Harris explained that, “Cuba has been the first country in the world to be so certified by the World Health Organization (WHO). As many as eight Caricom countries are in close range of being certified, with St Kitts and Nevis earmarked as the first OECS member state to achieve this major milestone later this year.”

The prime minister specifically advocated for the expansion of partnerships with development and donor agencies, such as the Clinton Global Initiative, in order to accelerate the strides being made by Caricom.

“We in the Caricom region have found it imperative to pool limited resources and to promote functional cooperation as a means of effectively maximising health care programming outcomes that leave no one behind,” he said.

He also pointed to the regional project “Every Caribbean Woman, Every Caribbean Child” as an illustration of Caricom’s collective endeavours to reduce adolescent pregnancy, cervical cancer, gender-based violence, and mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

“This commitment focuses on women, girls and children, essentially as a response to the major targets of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and the Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health in Latin America and the Caribbean,” Harris added.

He also said special attention must be paid to: Reducing extreme poverty and other structural barriers to accessing health care; promoting sexual and reproductive health and rights; keeping girls in school, as well as to prevention, treatment, social protection, legal services, and sustainable financing.