REMARKS DELIVERED BY AMBASSADOR LOLITA APPLEWHAITE, CARICOM SECRETARY-GENERAL, AT THE SIGNING OF THE DECLARATION OF REGIONAL COALITION ON WATER AND SANITATION FOR THE ELIMINATION OF CHOLERA IN THE ISLAND OF HISPANIOLA, PAHO HEADQUARTERS, WASHINGTON DC. TUESDAY, 18 SEPTEMBER, 2012

​(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) Salutations.

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM), of which the Republic of Haiti is an integral part, welcomes this Regional Coalition for Water and Sanitation to Eliminate Cholera in the Island of Hispaniola.

This initiative further consolidates efforts at addressing the public health challenge of the cholera epidemic which followed the devastating earthquake experienced by Haiti in January 2010.

The role of the international community was pivotal in the restoration of some normalcy in the aftermath of the earthquake. The displacement of more than a million persons in Port au Prince alone provided the prerequisite conditions for the public health challenge presented by the cholera epidemic commencing in October 2010, followed shortly thereafter by an outbreak in the Dominican Republic.

To date, the adverse dwelling conditions in and around the capital city of Haiti continue and remain a challenge in the absence of any reliable form of potable water for the vulnerable in that well known tented situation.

In response to a request from the Government of Haiti, the CARICOM Secretariat was instrumental, in partnership with the government of Australia and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), in directing support to the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) initiative which targets improvement in sanitation infrastructure and sensitization of sections of the population to the importance of proper hygiene practices in combating the cholera epidemic. We hope to be able to maintain this tangible contribution to WASH. In addition of course, we pledge our advocacy and championship for this cause.

CARICOM recognizes the tremendous efforts of PAHO, USAID and the Red Cross, among others, in contributing to the restoration of public health- normalcy to Haiti. History teaches us, however, that without reliable sanitation and basic potable water, cholera will remain endemic.

The countries of the region of the Americas, supported by PAHO and the International Financial Institutions, turned back the 1990 cholera threat. We have done this before and are committed to working with our partners to do it again. The CARICOM Secretariat on behalf of its Member States supports the work of this initiative to eliminate cholera in this part of the Americas. We extend our appreciation to the Governments of the Dominican Republic and Haiti for coming together to combat the scourge of cholera through their vision for this coalition. Their call to action, in concert with PAHO/WHO, UNICEF and the Centre for Disease Control (CDC), is one which should be heeded by all of us.

The CARICOM Secretariat, on behalf of the Caribbean Community CARICOM, is therefore pleased to officially join this partnership for Elimination of Cholera in Hispaniola and so indicate by its signature to the Declaration.