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Foreign Minister Shahid calls for the inclusion of vulnerable groups in every stage of development to integrate them into society and to eliminate discrimination

18 February 2021

Minister of Foreign Affairs, His Excellency Abdulla Shahid today participated in the 2021 ECOSOC Special Meeting on “Reimagining Equality: Eliminating racism, xenophobia and discrimination for all in the decade of action for the SDGs”. The meeting was organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) to address the links between structural racism, discrimination, inequalities and the pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals.

In his statement, Minister Shahid highlighted the Maldives’ firm stand against xenophobia, racism, islamophobia, violent extremism and all forms of discrimination. He called for global solidarity to reach our goals for 2030 and urged the international community to reach out in order to bring the furthest behind to the front; and to pave a path for them to keep pace with the rest of the world.

Minister Shahid also reiterated the need for Governments to strengthen the measures to eliminate structural discrimination, by identifying gaps, challenges and opportunities. Moreover, he underlined the importance of including vulnerable groups in every stage of development, to integrate them into society.

This Ministerial Meeting will culminate in an ECOSOC Presidential Statement that will provide inputs to the United Nations High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development in July 2021 when it reviews SDG10 on reducing inequalities and SDG16 on peace, justice and strong institutions.

ENDS