LAURIE Peters returned to Canada last month, ending her just over three years tour of duty as that country’s top diplomat here, during which time relations between Ottawa and Kingston strengthened, especially after the novel coronavirus outbreak in March this year.
“We were one of the first to respond to Jamaica’s list of needs — and remember how difficult that must have been for any country to try to identify, in those early days, what their needs were. Is it ventilators, is it hospitals; and so a list was put forward, and immediately we responded. We decided to work through the Pan American Health Organization to make sure that Jamaica got the supplies to fulfil the needs,” High Commissioner Peters told the Jamaica Observer in an interview a few days before her departure.
“We’ve also been working on a mobile hospital unit — that has been requested of us as well — and hope to have some news on that soon,” Peters said, adding that both governments have been engaged in discussion, “at most senior levels”, about Canada’s commitment to share a vaccine for COVID-19 when it becomes available.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported that Canada, which last week began a national vaccination campaign to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus, has already pledged CAD$75 million in funding to support the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines in lower income economies as part of the COVAX facility.
“This includes a CAD$5-million investment in the development of a mechanism to equitably reallocate vaccine doses through the COVAX facility, either by donation or exchange,” the WHO stated in a news release last Friday.
Acknowledging that Canada, like many other countries, is going through a tough time economically because of the pandemic, High Commissioner Peters said the difficulties have not softened her Government’s resolve to keep offering assistance.
“It is, of course, any prime minister’s obligation to make sure, first and foremost, that we’re taking care of Canadian citizens, but we are a very able and willing global partner as well. And we have a very special relationship with this region,” she said.
Peters recalled that in 2017, after two category 5 hurricanes — Irma and Maria — hit the Caribbean within two weeks, causing severe damage to several countries amounting to US$95 billion, there was an immediate injection of funds and technical support from Canada.
Following on that, the Canada-Caribbean Resilience Facility — described as “a single-donor trust fund aimed at achieving more effective and coordinated gender-informed climate-resilient preparedness, recovery, and public financial management practices in targeted Caribbean countries — was launched in May 2019.
The facility, Peters explained, allowed Canada, through a number of impressive initiatives that were nimble, targeted, and tailored, “to say we appreciate and understand that your [climate] footprint may be small, but the vulnerabilities are great”.
In September 2019, when Hurricane Dorian hit The Bahamas, for which Peters also served as high commissioner, the facility was utilised to provide assistance, including airlifting Jamaica Defence Force soldiers to the affected islands in that archipelago.
“This idea of being a facilitator or a bridge, that Caribbean neighbours helping Caribbean neighbours with a hand up from Canada, I think is a perfect role, and that hand up continues,” Peters said.
“The commitment is steadfast and is there in good times and in bad. And, what’s the expression? Good friend better than pocket money; although I’m told that it’s better when a good friend comes with pocket money, which is the case with Canada… we do come with the funding and our technical assistance as well,” she said.
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