South-south cooperation has benefits for youth and women Minister Phillip

Minister of State with responsibility for Health in the Federal Government, the Honourable Senator Wendy Phipps, said that the idea of South-South Cooperation can prove beneficial to young people and women in the region.

Minister Phipps was at the time delivering remarks at the June 25-26 opening ceremony of the Regional Stakeholder Dialogue and Consensus Building Workshop on Women and Youth in Peace and Security, using the South-South approach, held at Mount Nevis Hotel.

"Engaging in such South-South cooperation is essential to unleashing the full potential of young people and women and advancing their participation in civic and political life. "The paradox is, that although women and young people have strength in numbers, at the same time they face disproportionate economic, political and social barriers to advancement around the world," said the Senator Phipps. "Empowering marginalized young people and women through partnerships that promote innovation and technology, along with sustainable development, poverty reduction and employment creation is therefore critical – and this can be achieved with the successful implementation of the "South-South Principles" in our respective countries."

Senator Phipps described the hosting of the workshop as "a blue-ribbon moment for women's rights and youth rights". She added that "... it is also a blue-ribbon moment for the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, which address several areas of concern for women and youth, such as quality education (Goal 4), gender equality (Goal 5), and Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions (Goal 16)."

Senator Phipps used the opportunity to express thanks and appreciation to the Commonwealth Secretariat and its secretary general for their continued work within the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis.

"I wish to thank the Commonwealth Secretariat and, in particular, the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, the Rt. Honourable Patricia Scotland QC, for leveraging the weight of her good offices towards the needs of St. Kitts and Nevis," she said. "This intervention to assist our country, and the sub-region as a whole, is timely and very much appreciated, and St. Kitts and Nevis is grateful for the Commonwealth's continued focus on the particular needs of small states.

Minister Phipps wished the participants a successful workshop, as "they share their knowledge, expertise and skills. It is also expected that there will be discussions on successful initiatives that are fostering peace and security in stakeholders' home countries with the active participation of and/or direct focus on youth and women," she added.

According to the United Nations the South-South Approach or South-South Cooperation refers to the technical cooperation among developing countries in the Global South.

The workshop was organized by the Ministries of Health and Gender Affairs in St. Kitts and in Nevis with funding from the Commonwealth Secretariat.