As the United Nations’ sexual and reproductive health agency, UNFPA’s mission is to deliver a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person’s potential is fulfilled. This is the case globally and in the Caribbean where we serve 22 Dutch and English speaking countries and territories.

 

In 2021, the Caribbean faced four major humanitarian challenges at once: the Venezuelan migrant and refugee crisis, which has become the largest regional human displacement crisis in recent history with an estimated 150,000 Venezuelan migrants/refugees having settled in Aruba, Curacao, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago; the annual Atlantic hurricane season putting 16 out of 22 countries and territories at risk; other natural disasters, such as the volcanic eruption in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the extreme flooding in Guyana; and the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Despite these challenges, UNFPA continued to support governments, civil society organizations (CSOs) as well as other partners and stakeholders to maintain the provision of sexual and reproductive health and rights information and services and protect those who are most vulnerable. We also continued to institute measures to address increased gender based violence and harmful practices that have resulted from the pandemic and implement systems to ensure the supply of modern contraceptives and reproductive health commodities.

Our Sub-regional Programme Document (SRPD), which is based on three major outcomes grounded firmly in UNFPA’s transformative results and linked to our Multi-Country Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (MSDCF), was also developed and approved in 2021. The SRPD focuses mainly on achieving three transformative results: zero unmet need for family planning, zero preventable maternal deaths and zero gender-based violence and harmful practices.

These outcomes cannot be achieved without the continued support of our stakeholders and partners. I would like to thank them for being unwavering in their commitment during a period that has been incredibly unprecedented. The needs of our most vulnerable populations have become even more urgent and we must continue to partner and advocate so that we can keep providing the well-needed support and services that are required, while ensuring that we leave no one behind.