Madame Chair,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the fourteen Member States of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) on agenda item 136, Proposed programme budget 2026 - Addressing Racism and Racial Discrimination. We thank the Secretary-General for his report and the Advisory Committee for its related report.

CARICOM aligns itself with the statement delivered by the distinguished representative of Uruguay on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, and wishes to add the following remarks.

Madame Chair,

For CARICOM, addressing racism and racial discrimination within the United Nations Secretariat is a matter of enduring importance. The historical legacies of the transatlantic slave trade, colonialism and systemic exclusion continue to shape the lived experiences of our peoples, and it is in that spirit that we remain committed to the effective implementation of the strategic action plan on addressing racism and promoting dignity for all in the Secretariat.

CARICOM therefore welcomes the continued progress made by the Anti-Racism Office in advancing its three-pronged approach: encompassing advocacy and awareness-raising, transparency and institutional reform, and accountability and racial justice. We take note, in particular, of the launch of the Secretariat’s first training course on racism and racial discrimination in the workplace, the expansion of the network of anti-racism advocates, and the work undertaken to refine the strategic action plan through a consultative process.

Madame Chair,

The data presented in the Secretary-General’s report reflect that structural challenges persist. The analysis of staffing composition and recruitment outcomes indicates continuing disparities at successive stages of the selection process, including at senior levels. These findings reinforce the importance of sustained institutional action grounded in measurable outcomes and supported by reliable data. In this regard, CARICOM underscores the importance of structured reporting with measurable performance indicators that enable Member States to assess progress against clearly defined benchmarks.

We welcome the planned introduction of voluntary and anonymized race-related data collection through Inspira in 2026, which we hope will strengthen the evidence base for policy reform and enable more targeted corrective action over time.

CARICOM also takes note of the concerns identified in the staff engagement survey regarding trust in reporting mechanisms and perceptions of fairness in how complaints are handled. Addressing these concerns will require not only clear policy frameworks but also consistent managerial accountability and practical safeguards that give staff confidence to come forward without fear of adverse consequence. We encourage the time-bound completion of the review of Secretary-General’s bulletin ST/SGB/2019/8, which would formally define racial discrimination as prohibited conduct, and call for clearly defined benchmarks to guide follow-up actions and ensure accountability in the implementation of the revised framework. In this regard, we also underscore the importance of the consistent application of established disciplinary procedures in cases involving racial discrimination, in accordance with the Organization’s administrative framework.

We take note of the observations of the Advisory Committee regarding the placement and reporting arrangements of the Anti-Racism Office and agree that future reporting should provide a clearer assessment of how current arrangements support mandate delivery, along with options to enhance effectiveness where needed.

We are also mindful of the resource constraints under which the Anti-Racism Office currently operates, including the impact of the UN80 Initiative on its staffing and non-post resources. CARICOM would encourage ensuring that broader organizational reforms are implemented with due regard for their potential impact on staff diversity and on the capacity of the Office to deliver its mandate effectively, with allocated resources remaining aligned with clearly defined deliverables under the mandate. In this context, CARICOM also underscores the importance of ensuring that any application of artificial intelligence in recruitment, staff management and related processes is subject to rigorous oversight to safeguard equity and inclusion, and welcomes the work of the Secretary-General’s expert panel on artificial intelligence as an important step toward establishing the standards and best practices necessary to ensure that such tools do not embed or amplify racial bias.

Madame Chair,

CARICOM remains committed to constructive engagement on this item and looks forward to continued reporting that demonstrates tangible progress in fostering an organizational culture where dignity and respect are lived realities for all.

I thank you.