The Right Honourable Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines,
His Excellency Dr Rui Alberto de Figueiredo Soares, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation, and Regional Integration of Cabo Verde
Lord Collins of Highbury, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the UK,
Deputy Secretary-General of UNCTAD, Mr Pedro Manuel Moreno
Distinguished panellists, and participants,
Assalamu alaikum, and a very good afternoon to you all.
I thank Prime Minister Gonsalves, and the UNCTAD Secretary-General for their valuable support in co-organizing this event.
I also wish to express my appreciation to the panellists for their presence here today.
Your participation highlights the critical importance of building productive capacities in Small Island Developing States.
Increasing productivity and productive capacity is central to driving long-term, inclusive economic growth. It is fundamental to enhancing output efficiency and fostering sustainable development.
The logic is straightforward: higher productivity allows us to generate more output from the same level of inputs, improving resource allocation and, ultimately, societal welfare.
These foundational economic principles are critical for SIDS, where resource constraints, geographic isolation, and vulnerability to external shocks have historically hampered our ability to develop resilient and diversified economies.
Today’s discussion seeks to address this critical issue, recognizing that SIDS face unique structural vulnerabilities, including narrow economic bases, high exposure to climate change, and geographic disadvantages.
In the Maldives, our tourism sector has propelled us from low-income to upper middle-income status.
However, like many other SIDS, we find ourselves caught in the middle-income trap.
Overcoming this challenge requires structural transformation, diversification of the economy, and enhanced productive capacities.
The Ten-Year programme of Action for SIDS, ABAS, lays out an actionable plan for enhancing the productive capacities of SIDS.
To ensure the successful implementation of this Agenda, I call upon the international community to assist SIDS in diversifying their economies and expanding their productive capacity frameworks. How do we achieve this?
First, we must acknowledge that technological advancement is a key driver of productivity gains.
The digital economy represents a new frontier for growth, offering opportunities for innovation, achieving economies of scale, and market integration.
In the Maldives, my Government is committed to facilitating access to global payment gateways, ensuring that the country is fully integrated into the global market. We’ve set a core policy goal of strengthening the digital economy.
We’re also investing heavily in skills development programmes to harness the benefits of the digital economy.
By equipping our youth with the necessary digital skills, we’re positioning ourselves to tap into the global creative economy, valued at 2.25 trillion US dollars.
Leveraging the rise of e-commerce and digital platforms, we’re reforming our regulatory frameworks to boost commerce, encourage value addition, and enhance our global competitiveness.
Second, we must recognize the importance of resilient infrastructure as a key enabler of economic growth.
In the Maldives, we’re upgrading our infrastructure across key sectors, including transportation, energy, and digital connectivity, in order to access global supply chains and attract new investments.
We’re approaching near-universal access to high-speed internet, creating a digital ecosystem that fosters entrepreneurship, enhances service delivery, and boosts productivity.
Moreover, advanced technologies, such as 5G and AI-enhanced systems, are being deployed to enhance State capacity.
Third, we must make evidence-based policy decisions.
The Productive Capacities Index developed by UNCTAD is a critical tool in this regard.
This Index allows policymakers to measure the productive capacities of SIDS, track progress towards the SDGs, and design targeted interventions to unlock growth potential.
I urge our development partners to provide the necessary financial support to further develop and refine this Index, ensuring it remains a practical tool to make informed policy decisions and drive economic transformation.
I also would like to invite UNCTAD and other relevant UN agencies to collaborate with the Maldives to identify country specific policy interventions that the Government could implement in boosting our productive capacity.
I also invite our development partners to support us in expanding our digital infrastructure and strengthening institutions such as the National Centre for Information Technology and the National Cybersecurity Agency.
Such collaborations will support the advancement of the digital economy and ensure they remain protected from the increased proliferation of cyber threats.
We must challenge the narrative that SIDS are inherently limited in their development prospects.
While it is true that we, the SIDS, face unique structural challenges, we’ve seen examples of similarly situated countries that have successfully overcome these barriers through strategic investments in productive capacities, innovation, and human capital development.
As the great American boxer, Muhammad Ali once said, “It isn’t the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out, it’s the pebbles in your shoe.” For SIDS, those pebbles are the outdated development thinking and strategies that we must replace with forward-looking, data-driven plans, rooted in productivity-enhancing reforms.
Today’s event continues the momentum generated at SIDS4.
I encourage our distinguished panellists to offer concrete recommendations for enhancing productive capacities.
I also invite you to recommend policy strategies on strategic investments in economic diversification and fostering innovation across industries.
Thank you.
