 Caribbean voices are being heard at the Global COVID-19 Summit, convened by U.S. President Joe Biden. Regional leaders have raised concerns about the impact of COVID-19 on their economies and have committed to meeting global vaccination targets. The summit is being held under the theme, Ending the Pandemic and Building Back Better on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly high-level week. Here's Homer DeMarc. The virtual gathering saw participation and support for summit targets from heads of government from the Caribbean and countries across the globe. President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, Dr. Mohamed Ufan Ali, addressed the impact of COVID-19 on developing countries. Developing countries have suffered a contraction of growth, massive jobs losses, closure of many small businesses, and imperiling of key sectors such as tourism. Presently, disruption to global supply chain and logistics are increasing import costs and consequently the cost of living. As such, while I endorse the optimism of this summit, I am mindful that global economic recovery will be uneven and that unless the inequalities in the global economy are addressed and the problems of developing states are particularised in this process, the legacy of the pandemic will frustrate developing countries. Recovery and the attainment of the sustainable development goals. Honourable Keith Rowley utilised the global platform to highlight the importance of equitable access to vaccines in ending the COVID-19 pandemic. With the emergence in late 2019 of this pathogen, we have seen disruption of every facet of global life and it is likely to be with us for some time, according to the most optimistic predictions. These facts serve to underscore the importance of working together with like-minded governments and organisations as we advance efforts to vaccinate our populations, save lives and rebuild more resilient economies and societies. I join with you all today in committing Trinidad and Tobago to this global vaccination effort. And as Barbados continues to manage increasing cases of COVID-19 with some 881 individuals currently in isolation, Prime Minister Honourable Mia Motley in her address underscored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, although devastating, will lead to increased strengthening and capacity of Caribbean health systems. Our efforts to combat COVID-19 have already started to lay the foundation for an improved health system and for the return to economic growth that is so essential. Tourism and travel dependent economies in last year, 2020 as a result of the pandemic all scored double digit declines in our GDP. Two examples of the improvements to which I spoke just now will be in our clinical and operational domains. As a result of our experience with COVID, we are better positioned to detect, analyse and respond to new threats due to our investments in laboratory capacity and indeed in the strengthening of our epidemiological services. The summit was held on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly High Level Week on 22 September 2021. From the Government Information Service, I'm Hermione Mark reporting.