Remarks by Prime Minister Dr. the Right Honourable Keith Mitchell
Grenada, as a young but stable democracy, is pleased to be associated with the first Summit for Democracy.
Since 1984, Grenada has had a solid record of peaceful transition of power through the electoral process with no confrontation or opposition to the results of the democratic process. Coming after a period of revolution, Grenada, therefore, stands as a beacon given the strength of our commitment to the principles of democracy and good governance.
We are therefore honoured to join like-minded nations in heeding President Biden’s call to convene this important meeting, recognising that no democracy is safe unless all democracies are protected.
Grenada acknowledges the interdependent nature of our world and the fundamental importance of maintaining hemispheric stability and ensuring that our Caribbean region remains a zone of peace and bastion for democracy.
There are many challenges to keeping democracy sacred, but Grenada is uncompromising in its defence of democratic ideals. Grenada places tremendous value on collaboration as part of the democratic process and as such, we have established a social compact with various stakeholders including the private sector and civil society.
Grenada promotes the tenets of good governance, accountability, and transparency, the rule of law and its enforcement, consensus-building, equity and inclusiveness.
We recognise the rights of every citizen and resident and we uphold the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other core human rights instruments.
In keeping with the goals of the Summit For Democracy, Grenada commits to:
- Facilitate greater exposure of young people to parliamentary procedures through the Youth Parliament.
- Enhance anti-corruption measures through widespread application of a National Gift Registry.
- Implement a gender-responsive approach to budgeting and a Gender Equality Policy and Action Plan.
We pledge to deliver on these commitments during the “Year of Action” as we look forward to the second part of this summit in 2022.
I thank you.
GIS
