Gratitude for all the support that Cuba has received from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) set the tone, on Thursday afternoon, to the reception that the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, gave at the Palace of the Revolution to the Under-Secretary General and Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean of the UNDP, Luis Felipe López-Calva.
 
There are several issues, said the Head of State in the cordial meeting, in which the participation of the UNDP has been decisive for the Caribbean country. He highlighted the understanding that the entity has had for "the priorities in our Economic and Social Development Program until 2030: the UNDP - said Díaz-Canel - has been very cooperative in providing support and addressing situations that allow us to move forward".
 
In the same line of thought, the President emphasized "the understanding that the UNDP has had on the effects of the blockade on Cuba"; and made reference to the report submitted by the United Nations Development Program - which he considered to be very objective - which supports the island and is addressed to "the Secretary General of the United Nations, every year, when the proposal for a resolution in the fight against the blockade is submitted".
 
The President wanted to thank, "in a very particular way", for "all the support given to us by the UNDP at the most complex moment for Cuba with the pandemic (of COVID-19)", and then he referred to "a work agenda, a whole group of issues on which we agree and on which we are working together".
 
Adding arguments about the projection of the United Nations entity towards the island, Díaz-Canel mentioned "the Food Sovereignty and Nutrition Education Program (of Cuba), where the UNDP is supporting us". Likewise, he referred to the Government Management System based on science and innovation and the understanding of innovation for the country's development, a path that is shared and understood, as well as "the problems of the study of vulnerabilities in disaster situations", an issue in which, the President said, Cuba has received support.
 
Regarding this last front of work, Díaz-Canel said: "We believe that it transcends what can be useful for Cuba and can also be applied in island states, with many vulnerabilities, such as the Caribbean area, where the UNDP has a very decisive participation".
 
The First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party reaffirmed that "Cuba is going to fulfill the Sustainable Development Goals, regardless of the blockade," and even in these difficult times, he said.
 
For his part, Luis Felipe López-Calva affirmed to the Cuban President that it was an honor to have been received: "I thank you very much -he said- for having taken the valuable time to talk with us. It is a visit that we had planned for some time and we were finally able to carry it out".
 
From his perspective "as Undersecretary General of the System" (of the United Nations), Luis Felipe López-Calva valued the visit as "very important, because Cuba has always been a great ally of multilateralism, and we appreciate that very much".
 
Referring to the UNDP, the visitor told the Head of State that they consider themselves "one more tool to be always aligned with the objectives of the Economic and Social Development Plan (of Cuba), which are very consistent with the sustainable development agenda. We really always recognize that effort, and as UNDP we have a privileged space to work, which we sincerely appreciate".
 
On a personal level, "as a Mexican", Luis Felipe López-Calva commented that "it is always a privilege to be in Cuba". And later he said: "For us it is very important to talk with the authorities and understand how we can be a better UNDP for Cuba".
 
The meeting was also attended by Ivan Zverzhanovski, UNDP Resident Representative ad interim in Cuba, as well as by Rodrigo Malmierca Díaz, Minister of Foreign Trade and Investment, and Deputy Minister Déborah Rivas Saavedra.